Tesla Adventures: The Legend of Tesla
by Nigel Yearning
Summary: Ash visits Faraday City to spend his long needed vacation. But soon wounds up chasing down a legendary Pikachu, who's view of the world might change him and his Pokemon forever.
1. Chapter I

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter I_

"Welcome to Faraday City." said the cruise employee as he handed Ash his briefcase.

"Thanks."

Ash walked down the ramp as Pikachu held on tight to his shoulder. There were a lot of people and Pokémon here. Faraday City must be popular. Situated on the edge of Faraday Island, it was considered to be the best vacation spot in a 1,000 kilometers. It was a good place to kick back and relax after his long journey, just him, Pikachu, and a few other pokémon safely stored away in their poke balls. Now all he needed to do was find the hotel.

"You remember where the hotel is, Pikachu?" Ash asked.

Pikachu shook his head, "Pika."

"What about the street?"

Pikachu just shrugged his shoulders, clearly he had forgotten half the plan already, "Well," said Ash, "We're not in a rush or anything, are we buddy?"

"Pikachu!"

What was very interesting about Faraday City was its energy sustainability. Every skyscraper had solar panels and small vertical-axis wind turbines. They were new technology that had been installed a few years ago, it had cut the energy bill about 90% in every building each year. The vehicles here are all running off of electricity, their batteries charged by their solar panels or a simple wall socket. Ash can help but be at awe, as he gazed at the crystal clean air of the city. Even though it was small; at around 70,000; It proved to be very crowded.

Electric-type Pokémon seem common here, Ash kept seeing most of them at every turn. There was a Luxray just across the street, a Manectric just down the road, and... Is that a Magnezone?

Ash moved to the bus stop and waited in line with a few other people. Within a few minutes, the bus rolled up and stopped before them. After it unloaded some passengers, Ash hoped on and he was taken to the edge of the city. Pikachu sat beside him in the bench and snuggled up by his side. The traienr can't help but stare at the window and gaze at the architecture of the buildings. Its geometric shapes of hexagons and triangles, along with its reflective paint, made it inspiring.

"Liking the city?"

Ash turned to his side and saw a older gentlemen sitting in the other bench. He had white hair, yet his skin said he was in his forties. He wore a gray cotton shirt, a pair of brown pants, and some sturdy boots. There's also a couple of Poké balls clipped to his belt, but they were enlarged so they must be empty, "I'm sure am." Ash replied.

"You'll like it here. We have great food, scenery, the best parks, a lot of things in this island."

"Pikachu." Pikachu agreed.

The old man raised an eyebrow as he glanced at Pikachu, "Say son, is that a Pikachu?"

"Sure is," said Ash, "Why?"

"He just reminds me of an old friend of mine, I hadn't seen a Pikachu in years. Where did you get him?"

"A close friend of mine gave him to me a few years back, Pikachu's my first Pokémon."

"Pikachu!" Pikachu cheered.

The old gentlemen chuckled, "Did you, bond right away?"

Ash bit his bottom lip, "Things were a bit rusted at first."

"Let me guess," said the elder, "It was a _shocker_."

"That pretty much describes it."

"Pika." Pikachu nodded

"What's your name?"

"Ash Ketchum."

"My name's Matt Kissinger. Welcome to Faraday City, one of the most technologically advanced metropolis' in the world."

"How long have you been here, Matt?"

"Born and raised, I lived here for at least 83 years now."

Ash's eyes went big, "83? But you look like you're in your fifties!"

"Faraday Island owns one of the best medical technologies in the world," said Matt, "Human life expectancy here is 95. Scientists here are already experimenting with a filter that can make you internally young again, though it has never been tested on a live subject yet."

"Amazing, how long does Pokémon live?"

"Depends on the Pokémon, but they live quite a long time for their biology."

Ash looked out the window and saw more of the architecture of the city, "Do you know the history of Faraday Island?"

"They taught it in school," said Matt, "So well that it sticks, every detail of it. Here, let me give you the short version..."

Faraday Island was founded several hundred years ago by small groups of people who came from Kanto, the original settlers landed on what will soon to be Faraday City and sprouted out from there. Since these settlers were one of the most educated people of their time, they make great use of their knowledge and increased their living conditions on the island. Just several decades back, they irradiated several human and Pokémon diseases. Healthcare improved to a point where it reached an all time high for 10 years straight.

Originally the locals had to import most of their food since the soil couldn't nurture their crops, the island was infamous for its 95% failure rate for wheat and corn. Seeing that they can't grow food in the soil directly, they decided to grow "above" the soil using buildings. Ash saw one of these farms in question as his bus passes by. It was cylindrical shape, and was painted green. He could make out the fruits and vegetables growing inside, just underneath special UV lighting.

This method of food production made the price of land drop, and people spread out across the landscape to gather up all the land, "Why are there so many electric-type Pokémon here?" Ash asked.

"The original inhabitants had electric-type Pokémon with them," said Matt, "At least 10% of the electric-type Pokémon born here came from that group, over the years electric-type Pokémon were brought in from various parts of the world because the original culture valued electric-type Pokémon for their wonder displays of electricity. It's tradition."

Ash looked out the window and saw a couple of FCPD police officers walking the street, he glanced over at the street sign and realized he forgotten something, "Ah, I missed my stop!"

"Pika Pika!" cried Pikachu.

"Where you heading?" Matt asked.

"A hotel, I know what it looks like but me and Pikachu forgotten what the name is."

"Did you book in?"

"No."

"I think I can help you there," said Matt, "I have a grandson who has a spare guest room in his house, he likes having company over so you might be able to stay there for the night."

Matt got out a small notebook and pencil and wrote down the address on a slip of paper, then handed it to Ash, "Tell Mark that I've sent you, say you need a place to stay and he'll gladly help you out."

"Thanks Mr. Kissinger." said Ash.

"It's Matt. Now if you meet my son, Emmett, call him by our family name. He's the more official kind of person since he works for the FCPD, since he always work long hours. He should let you stay in his house, so long as his son approves."

"I'll make note of that."

The bus slowed and rolled to a stop, the doors opened and people got up to leave, "I gotta go Ash," said Matt, "Nice talking to you."

"Bye Matt."

"Pikachu." Pikachu waved goodbye.

Moments after Matt got off the bus, the doors closed and it started moving again. As Ash looked around, he noticed several people and their Pokémon were staring directly at him. Some of them glanced away as others continued staring, all in a suspicious manner, _Why are they all staring at me? _He thought.

Looking closely, he noticed they weren't staring directly at him but something near him. He glanced over to the suspected direction and saw Pikachu, the mouse Pokémon was staring back at some people, almost shyly. With all the electric-types around, Ash realized that there wasn't a single Pikachu nor their evolution variants around. Maybe these people hadn't seen a Pikachu before, Ash experienced this already back at Unova but this was a little bit more than he and his Pokémon was used to.

Ash decide its gotta be nothing, he picked up Pikachu and held him in his lap as his eyes drift out towards the window.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	2. Chapter II

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter II_

Ash got off at the next bus stop close to the address then wave for a cab, he told the cab driver to take him to the area and he replied without question. For some reason he kept looking at him through the rear-view mirror, mostly at Pikachu. Ash felt a chill up his spine when he saw the man rubbed the back of a yellow taser, neatly displayed in a small cubby hole in the dash. He quickly advert his eyes towards the windows.

The view of the outside quickly changed from urban to suburban within an instant. Ash was amazed at how beautiful it was. It was more of a park rather than a suburban area. The houses were either painted white or green. The roofs were completely covered with solar panels, some homes even have a double-helix wind turbine well displayed in their front yard. There were more recycling cans everywhere than the familiar trash can, everyone must have a good habit of recycling their rubbish. The cab driver made a turn and Ash got a good view of a nearby forest. Tall trees, probably around a few hundred years old, stood somewhat as tall as skyscrapers. Their foliage had a thick green color to it. Surrounding those trees were more recently planted ones. They were planted in a uniform position, along with some shrubs and flowers. A wild Butterfree was fluttering over the trees and landed on of them below.

Pikachu was taking notice, he stood on his toes to look out the window. For a moment, reality seemed peaceful for him. _Pikachu will definitely like it here_, Ash thought for himself, _Maybe I'll take him out into the woods tomorrow_.

Without warning, the cab driver slammed on his breaks. Ash jolted forward and was held back by his seatbelt. Unfortunately for Pikachu, the inertia caused him to slam into the back of the front passenger seat. He quickly bounced back into his seat in a daze but unhurt, "We're here." the driver said bluntly.

Ash paid the cab driver the cost of the ride, "Here you go, sir."

As the cab driver counted the pokédollars, Ash picked up Pikachu, grabbed his briefcase, and exited the cab. When the cab drove out of sight, Ash took a look at the house in question. Looked ordinary enough, it was a 2 story building with a neat set of green and white paint. Like all the other houses in the neighborhood, it also had solar panels and a wind turbine that appeared to came right from an art museum. Pikachu climbed back onto Ash's shoulder as he approached the front door.

After pushing the doorbell a couple of times, the door opened. It was a teenager, a bit older than Ash. He looked like the younger version of Matt Kissinger, he had black hair, a little bit of muscle, and a nice tan. He was wearing a greasy tank top and some frayed blue jeans, Ash noted that he was also barefooted.

"You look like you're here on vacation," said the teenager, "But got lost and found your way here. To the looks of that handwriting on that piece of paper there, my grandfather must had sent you."

Ash was surprised, he did not expect the kid to read his body language in such detail, "Whoa, you're right!"

"Pika pika!" agreed Pikachu in astonishment.

"How did you know?"

"Good eye," said the kid, "My dad is an investigator working for the Faraday City Police Department," the teenager extended out his hand, "Name's Mark Kissinger, call me Mark."

"I'm-"

"Ash Ketchum," interrupted Mark, "I heard about you. You're quite famous in some parts of the world for your acts of heroism. I'm honestly a fan myself, I never thought a celebrity like you will visit my humble home."

"Wow," said Ash, speechless, "It might be hard to keep a low profile around here then."

"Pikachu." Pikachu nodded.

"I say," said Mark, "Your Pikachu is almost like a blessing. I seen them on TV but never one in person. Come on, let's talk inside!"

Mark led Ash inside his home and into the living room. The walls were painted tan, the floor was oak, and the air smelled like a spring sunrise. Most of the furniture was made out of wood, most of which still contained the bark of the tree they came from. In the living room127cm LCD HDTV dominated the wall, below that was a round coffee table that looked like the horizontal section of a tree, so neat that you can count the rings on it. It was covered with fruits, junk food, and cheap soda cans that had yet to be opened. Two couches were positioned next to the coffee table at a 90 degree fashion, with one couch facing the TV. The other couch was facing the natural wood burning fireplace, its wooden shelf also contained the original bark of its tree.

Sitting on the couch was an Emolga, lazily slouched back as he was watching the news. Unlike the Emolgas Ash seen in Unova, this one had light brown fur instead of the usual dark gray. Ash almost laugh at the lazy posture of the Emolga, but didn't show it. Mark sat beside Emolga and handed him a can of cola, the electric-squirrel Pokémon popped open the can and drank its contents without taking his eyes off the screen. Ash sat down on the other couch, Pikachu got off his shoulder and sat back beside him.

"Is this your Emolga?" Ash asked.

"Sure is," said Mark, "He doesn't get out too often but I take him out at times."

"Emolga." Mark's Pokémon, he crushed his empty cola can in his hand before tossing it onto the coffee table.

"Oh come on Emolga, you know better than that!"

Emolga just groaned, Mark chuckled, "See, doesn't get out much."

"Where did you get him?" Ash asked.

"He was my starter Pokémon. I recalled that he was the last one they had after all the other beginning trainers scooped up most of the Pokémon. He just sat there with his couch potato body language... I knew I wanted him, so I took him under my wing."

"How many matches did he win?"

"He won a few skirmishes, helped me catch a Magnemite a few years back."

"No major matches?"

"None. I just wanna be an electrician and help maintain the power supply, you know that Faraday Island gets a ton of severe thunderstorms?"

"Didn't say in the travel brochure."

"Just be careful when there is one around here, getting struck by lightning is far worse than getting shocked by an electric Pokémon. Believe me, I know."

Mark popped open his soda can and slurped it down, "So you're a tourist?"

"Sort of," said Ash, "I'm actually looking for something around here."

"Looking for what?"

"I don't know what it is, but it's important."

"So you don't know what you're searching for."

"Correct."

"In time, it may come finding you. If you know where to look, it will show up sooner or later."

Ash glanced at the cluttered coffee table for a moment, then remembered he hadn't ate this morning, "What's to eat for lunch?"

"The crap we have on that table," said Mark, "How about we go out to the food market and see what they have? Might as well give you a good feel of the place in the meantime."

"Sure."

"Alright then."

Mark sat his drink on the counter and picked up Emolga, his Pokémon climbed right up on his shoulder and got settled in, "It's not that far from here, we can walk."

**. . .**

Every time Ash took a step on the sidewalk, small lights lit up. He didn't know that the market center of Faraday City was this amazing. Pikachu got up high on Ash's head as much as he can to get a better view of his surroundings. The place was teaming with humans and electric Pokémon. Even though there weren't any other Pikachus around, he still felt at home. It didn't bug him that the humans were taking quick glances at him, some even stared at him. Pikachu don't mind, he was already used to such attention already.

"What's with the light show on the sidewalk?" asked Ash.

"They're actually step-powered generators." said Mark.

"Step-powered?"

"Yup, powered by only the force of us walking. We get a lot of electricity from walking on these you know, I even have these step-powered generators at my house."

That blew Pikachu's mind, he had never heard of step-powered generators before. He couldn't tell how much energy is generated, but an hour's worth with heavy foot traffic may be enough to power a house for a day, "This place is just more cooler by the minute!" his trainer exclaimed.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu cheered with him.

Emolga tapped on Mark's head, "Emolga!"

"What is it Emolga?" asked Mark.

Emolga pointed to the nearby hot dog stand, where a middle-aged gentlemen was serving them, "You want a hot dog Emolga," said Mark, "You got it."

_I'm a bit peckish myself_, Pikachu thought as he stared at the hot dog stand, _A hot dog with ketchup won't hurt._

"Pika." said Pikachu as he tapped Ash's temple.

"You want one too Pikachu?" Ash asked.

"Pikachu." Pikachu nod his head.

The group managed to get each a hot dog from the vendor, Pikachu was disappointed when he saw there weren't any ketchup. But since he was hungry, he didn't wanna be picky. Ash asked what kind of hot dog he want and Pikachu gestured for a plain one. Emolga got his with mustard on it, his eyes lit up when he got his hands on it. As the group sat at a nearby outdoor table, Emolga struggled to devour his hot dog as fast as he can.

"Slow down Emolga," said Mark, "I don't want to do the Heimlich remover on you again."

"Emolga!" he back talked with his mouth full, then slowed down and started chewing his food.

"So Mark," said Ash, "Anything interesting going on around Faraday City?"

"No," said Mark as he took a bite of his hot dog, "But there are some interesting stuff happening on YouTube."

"What stuff?"

"Well, since seeing your Pikachu reminded me of this. I saw this video of some idiots hooking a Pikachu up to the turbines of a nuclear power plant. Now the power plant gives off 25,000 MW okay, they thought that if they hook up their friend's Pikachu to the generators they would make it stronger. The poor thing was strapped up with so many wires that I swore I saw him cried, damn idiots."

"What happened to the Pikachu?"

"When they flip the switch, things started happening all at once. The nearby city of one-hundred thousand experienced a blackout, the turbine generators explode, and some of the amateurs got electrocuted."

"Ouch."

"Get this, they still got up and laughed it over at their failed attempt to make their Pikachu stronger. In fact, the Pokémon was covered in soot from the power surge. Instead of connecting the electrodes to the cheeks, the idiots placed them on the _sides_ of the Pikachu's body. What completed the humor of the video was that the Pikachu gave the camera the peace sign, along with a smile."

Pikachu laughed at the thought, "See," said Mark, "It's funny! Even though they got in trouble and some served prison time for it, they managed to get a hundred _million_ views after just a month!"

"One of my friend's dad rigged my Pikachu up to a hydroelectric dam to get it stronger. I think something similar happened, but the whole thing was a blur when I think back to it."

"People don't know the danger of electricity these days," said Mark, "That's why I always wear special boots with inch thick rubber treads. Makes me electricity resistant when I do my own technical wiring in my house," Mark's eyes went big without warning, "Don't tell my dad about that last part, okay?"

"I promise I won't."

As Ash and Mark continue to chat, Pikachu finished his hot dog and decided to go look around a bit. He won't go far, and he knows the way back to the house if he get's lost, _I can take care of myself,_ Pikachu thought as he gets up from the bench, _This will only be just a second_.

Pikachu looked around for anything interesting to investigate. A lot of humans and Pokémon were around, not wise to wander off around there. After a bit of searching for anything nearby, he noticed a small gap between two market stalls. It was only 10ft away, not that far. Before Pikachu head towards it, a human came around with some groceries. The mouse Pokémon watched as the man go through his shopping bag and he pulled out a bottle of ketchup. He took one good look at the label and his face dropped, "Wrong brand!" he cursed.

The human walked over to the nearby alley and tossed it into one of the bins before stormed off, grumbling under his breath. Low and behold, an opportunity presented itself to the curious Pikachu. He quickly ran on all fours towards the alley and jumped into the bin that contained the ketchup, Pikachu saw it was full of empty plastic bottles. That made his job easier, and sure enough, he found the ketchup bottle in question. Pikachu picked up and examined the label, it was a store brand, no wonder the human threw it away. As they always say: One man's trash is a Pokémon's treasure... Sort of.

_Got the goods_. Pikachu thought with a smile.

Just when he was about to get out, the can suddenly tipped over and crashed onto its side. The ketchup bottle slipped out of Pikachu's hands as he tumbled out of the bin and flopped on his belly. The tumbling made the world spin a little bit, Pikachu shook away the dizziness before getting back up to his feet, _Where's the ketchup?_ Pikachu asked himself.

Just when Pikachu began to look for it, he stopped cold. At first, Pikachu thought he was looking at a mirror someone threw out. But no, this was no mirror. The Pikachu he saw was slightly larger and was wearing a pair of... Welding goggles? Or was that engineering goggles? He couldn't tell for sure. Pikachu can see his counterpart's soft eyes through the goggle lens. Not only did he see grumpiness, he saw that he was serious. Pikachu stood on his hind legs as he and the other Pikachu glared at him, the former can feel the hot temper emanating from the latter.

_Ask him something_. Pikachu thought.

"Pikachu?" Pikachu asked who he was.

The goggle wearing Pikachu raised an eyebrow in curiosity, his eyes scanned him for a few seconds. Without saying a word, the stray Pikachu pulled out the ketchup bottle from behind his back and shoved it into Ash's Pikachu's arms. Before Pikachu could say thank you, his counterpart climbed into another bin and rummaged through it for a few seconds. He came out holding a half-eaten apple in his mouth, the Pikachu gave Ash's Pikachu one last glance before jumping out of the can and running off down the alley, vanishing from sight.

_Another Pikachu_, Pikachu thought, _I hadn't seen my own kind in a long time_.

Still wowed by the experience, Pikachu unconciously walked out of the alley and back towards the group. But just as he got close, he felt a rough human hand grab him at the back of his neck and forced him down into the asphalt. The ketchup bottle broke free from Pikachu's hands and clattered towards the group, who was quickly starting to take notice, "Got you Tesla!" screamed a harsh voice.

Pikachu managed to turn to see who it was. It was a police officer, a bit scrawny for his own good but strong enough to pin Pikachu down. The officer was enraged, maybe he hadn't had his evening coffee yet. Thinking he can take him, Pikachu tried to fire electricity up into the cop's arm, "Pika-"

Another police officer ran up out of nowhere and struck one of Pikachu's cheeks with a baton, causing him to send out a sporadic electric bolt that spiraled over the group's table and into unsuspecting pedestrians. Several people and their Pokémon dodged in time, dropping whatever they had in their hands in the process. The electric spark embedded into a food stall, where it harmlessly grounds itself into the earth.

Seeing what was going on, Ash got up and faced the cops with balled fists in an effort to come to Pikachu's defense, "Hey," he cried, "What are you doing, that's my Pikachu!"

The police officer pinning Pikachu down just glared at Ash, "Bull-"

"Wait Wally," his partner interrupted, "This isn't him. Tesla can't go anywhere without eye goggles, he's blind without them!"

"Sorry kid," said Wally as he gets off of Pikachu, "False identification."

Pikachu scrambled up and grabbed the ketchup bottle, then ran behind Ash for further protection, "I knew this was going to happen sooner or later." Ash shrugged.

"So you heard about Westinghouse's Pikachu then." said Officer Wally,

"Who?"

"Tesla Westinghouse, the Pikachu outlaw in Faraday City. At times he comes out around here just to get a meal from the trash cans when he's not out running around in the forest. You don't know who Tesla is!?"

"No one told me until now."

"There's a bounty on him you see, we've been trying to catch him ever since he went and disappeared. Pokémon trainers go out into the forest and try to capture him, only to have their Pokémon defeated and their butts electrocuted in the process. Rumor has it that the forest is filled with booby traps, assumed to be made by Tesla. Sometimes trainers get injured in these traps. Heck, they even lost Pokémon in that forest."

"Lost Pokémon?" Ash asked.

"They said that Tesla steals their poke balls and runs off with them," said Wally's partner, "You know, its been 20 years and we have yet to get a single picture of him. All we have are the pictures during his glory days in the Pokémon Leagues."

Wally took off his hat and sighed, "When I was kid, Tesla was my huge fan. Still is despite the change in reputation. I can't believe after all these years, he's still have some fight in him. Tesla's an old Pikachu, so old that he even outlived his trainer. Sorry for mistaking your Pikachu for another, I've jumped at any Pokémon that's yellow lately."

"It's okay." said Ash.

"Pikachu." Pikachu somewhat agreed with Ash.

"How's my old man doing?" Mark stepped in.

"He's doing fine," said Officer Wally, "Wait until he hears about this, that might help him with the Tesla case."

"Okay, I'll see you around Wally."

"Yeah, bye."

As the officers walked away, Ash picked up Pikachu and held him tight. The mouse Pokémon looked up and saw a lot of people were staring at them more than ever before, now it was starting to creep him out, _Why does it have to be me? _Pikachu thought.

"We should go now Ash," said Mark, "We don't need this much attention."

"Okay," said Ash, "Let's go."

"Pika." agreed Pikachu as he opened up the ketchup bottle.

**. . .**

Faraday City Police Officer Emmett Kissinger sat in his chair, holding a notepad in one hand and a mechanical pencil in the other. He gulped at the sight of the man he was about to interview. Like many victims before, he was used to seeing such injuries. Yet the injuries were unique every time, and he hadn't fully gotten over the it.

Laying in the hospital bed, Carl Dodge was almost still. His eyes drift towards Kissinger periodically, almost like in a catatonic state. From what Kisisnger heard, the man was blind in one eye and partially blurry in the other. His face still contained some of the horror from his attack, occurred just a few hours before.

Kissinger glanced at the man's right arm. It was red and horribly charred with 3rd degree burns, maybe that was where he received the surge of electricity. Kissinger glanced at the clock and saw it was 5:30, it was time to start the interview.

"Can you tell me," he said, "On what ou remember this afternoon around 2 oh clock?"

Carl took a deep breath and exhaled, he gave it a few seconds before answering, "I was... Walking down the sidewalk, near the Faraday City food market... I was on my usual schedule, getting some late lunch. As I past by an alleyway, I heard something stir in a recycling bin..."

"What was the recycling bin for?"

"Food scraps I believe."

"What was stirring in it?"

"It was yellow, a Pikachu. It poked its head out without warning, startling me. The Pikachu was wearing goggles, I think it was Tesla..."

Kissinger wrote down a few notes on the notepad, "Why do you believe he was Tesla?"

"He wore a pair of round lens welding goggles, which identifys him quite well. I tried to capture him by trying to call out one of my Pokémon, just to battle him... Then their was a bright white light and everything froze, I couldn't move any muscles, couldn't flinch... Then the world went dark."

"What do you think what happened?"

"He shocked me with a thunderbolt, a pretty powerful one. It was so powerful, I couldn't think. My thoughts seemed to lock up, or something. I have no way to put it."

"What happened to your arm?"

Carl's eyes drift towards his arm, keeping his head motionless, "That's where he shocked me?"

"Can you move it?" Kissinger asked.

"Barely, I couldn't move it without getting terrible pain though. I can't move my hand, the nerve damage is just too great."

"Where's your Pokémon?"

"The last that I remembered, he was in his Poké ball in the palm of my hand. The one Tesla electrocuted. I don't know where he is now."

Kissinger wrote down more notes, then wrap things up, "Thank you for your time, Carl."

"He's real," Carl muttered as his eyes returned to stare at the wall, "He exists, I saw him for a fraction of a second..."

The rest of Carl's words and sentences became soft garbled gibberish, Kissinger sighed as he got up and left the hospital room, _What did you do to this kid, Tesla? _Kissinger thought.

What hurts the most was that he knew the Pikachu personally, so it was no surprised to him that Tesla became an outlaw on that fateful day. Kissinger never thought it would get this bad though, Pokémon never take things this far. It had been years since he last seen Tesla in person, and once again he shown himself to another human being. And as always, the encounter ended with a crack of thunder.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	3. Chapter III

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter III_

"Where do I sleep tonight?" asked Ash.

"We got a guest bedroom upstairs," said Mark, "It's always kept clean so you shouldn't worry about the dust bunnies."

"I can live with dust bunnies."

Ash took his briefcase upstairs and looked for the bedroom in question, "It should be the one in the far corner." Mark called out from downstairs.

"Okay!" he called back.

Pikachu kept close behind as Ash opened the door to the bedroom. He saw how vacant it was, only containing a bed and a couple of nightstands each with lamps on them. The bed had a gray comforter on it with couple of jumbo pillows that can cushion any head. Ash pressed his hand against the mattress, its memory foam, excellent. The most stunning feature was the digital alarm clock. It had a steel body with a chrome plating, Ash picked it up and felt how heavy it was. It seemed solid, custom made perhaps? Ash sat it down and set the alarm to go off at 7AM in the morning, then pushed it towards the center of the surface of the nightstand, "You know the real reason on why I paired up with you Pikachu," asked Ash, "Back at Pallet Town when I was 10?"

"Pika?" Pikachu asked, clearly he didn't know or had forgotten about it.

"I destroyed my alarm clock. That's why I was late on getting my first Pokémon that day and got you instead, I'm glad it turned out well in the end."

"Pikachu." said Pikachu softly, Ash could see the love sparkle in his eyes.

Ash sat his briefcase on the bed and opened it, revealing several pairs of clean underwear and socks, some T-Shirts, a couple of blue jeans, a toothbrush, some toothpaste, and deodorant.

"I think I understand why this alarm clock his made out of solid metal," said Ash as he closed the briefcase, "It must be design for abuse," He examined the cord and saw it hooked up to a small, yet heavy-duty, 3 outlet surge protector. Along with the alarm clock's plug, it had the night lamps plugged into it as well. Odd.

"Definitely for abuse," said Ash as he return his attention back at Pikachu, "But why is this so well designed?"

Pikachu shrugged his shoulders, "Pika."

"Hey Ash," Mark called from downstairs, "Come down here, will yeah?"

"Okay!" Ash called back.

Ash and Pikachu came downstairs to find Mark, sitting in front of the TV with his Emolga. A couple of cases of cola sat in a cooler of ice, positioned conveniently on the natural coffee table. Next to the cooler sat a couple of freshly ordered pizzas, one cheese, the other pepperoni. It looked like the setup for a guys' night out, Ash hadn't had one of those in quite a while.

Pikachu grabbed a slice of pizza and sat back in a couch, Ash wondered why he was eating pizza then saw Emolga was eating a slice to. They bit into the pizza and chewed it well up, being civilized as they ate. Ash grabbed a slice of pizza and sat next to his Pikachu, the Pokémon rest his small head against Ash's side as he chew his pizza.

"Do you ever had nights where you watch TV?" asked Mark.

"Back at Pallet Town," said Ash, "But rarely elsewhere."

"Well, this will change that."

"Oh, Mark?"

"Yeah?"

"Why did the cops clobbered Pikachu?"

"There's a legendary Pikachu that lives around here named Tesla Westinghouse, though he's more of a myth than legend. I haven't seen Tesla myself, but my dad did. My family was well associated with his trainer, Irvin Westinghouse. Ever since Irvin died of natural causes, Tesla just dropped off the face of the earth. On occasion, the local news would report a person or two who said to be attacked by Tesla, even show the inflicted electric burns. But injuries from electric-type Pokémon are common here, and no one has yet to come up with some footage of Tesla yet."

"Tesla's a legend?" Ash asked.

"Pikachu?" Pikachu asked.

"Yeah, he's famous during his time. But now that time had past, everyone since moved on with the thought he had passed away. I'm not assuming Tesla's either dead or alive, I'm not touching that crap."

Ash heard the front door opened and turned to see who it was. It was a man wearing a brown tweet jacket, a light blue long-sleeved polar shirt, a black tie, a pair of blue trousers, and combat boots. He looked similar to Mark yet more mature in many ways, more cleaner is quite noticeable. When he took off his tweet jacket, Ash saw how muscular he was, along with some Poke balls clipped to his belt next to his FCPD badge.

"Hey Dad," said Mark.

Officer Kissinger centered his dark eyes on Ash, the trainer sensed that the officer was in the bad mood and close to the boiling point, "New friend of yours, Mark?" the cop asked.

"I'm Ash Ketchum," said Ash, "And this is-"

"A Pikachu," said Kissinger darkly, "Among all the Pokémon I've seen today, the last thing I would ever wanna see right now is a Pikachu."

"Pika?" asked Pikachu.

"What's wrong?" Ash asked

"Nothing against you or anything but I'm having a hard time right now, I even heard about that fiasco Wally caused about you Ash. I never expect you be here in my own home," he glanced at the coffee table, "Well, its more of Mark's home than mine."

"Mind if I ask what's on your mind?" asked Ash.

"Well I just interviewed a person who claimed to have encountered the-"

"Legendary Tesla?" Ash finished.

"You heard about the Pikachu? Not surprising. Anyway, he was at the hospital because he claimed he was attacked by him."

Though he wasn't surprised, Ash's eyes shot wide open anyway, "Attacked?"

"Pika pika?" Pikachu asked, looking like he was in shock too.

"He's dumb. He thought he could capture Tesla all by _himself_, and he payed the price. Not only did Tesla knocked the guy out cold, he kidnapped his Pokémon."

"A Pokémon kidnapping Pokémon?"

"Tesla's not any ordinary Pokémon," said Kissinger, "I knew that since I was a rookie in the police force. What actually dumbstruck me that I _know _Tesla personally, I was good friends with his trainer Irvin. My father was heavily associated with Irvin that he helped took care of his Pokémon, and that was a struggle since Tesla didn't wanna be touched by anyone or be fed by anyone besides Irvin. I couldn't imagine what was going through Tesla's mind when his trainer's life came to a close, a personality like that would turn anyone into a criminal."

"Pardon me, sir," said Ash, "I find it hard to believe that Tesla kidnapped Pokémon."

"I was at the scene of the incident and I saw no Poké balls there," said Kissinger, "And there was surely no Poké balls on the foolish idiot. His Pokémon were stolen, just like the others. Better believe it kid, Tesla knew how to use Poké balls like a _trainer_. Well, that's what everyone was saying."

"Wait, this happened before?"

"Too many times to be counted for the past twenty years. The thing is that Tesla has a distinct sound to his attacks. His attacks are painfully loud when at full force, and the electricity he summons up are a bluish-white rather than yellow. That's more power than a _Raichu_, or any other electric-type Pokémon. How do I know this, I've seen him show his power in his previous life."

Kissinger took a deep breath, "Well anyway, I best head to bed. Is Ash staying here tonight Mark?"

"Yeah."

"Okay then. Oh Ash, note that the alarm clock in the guest bedroom has a kick to it when it goes off."

"I'll bear that in mind, goodnight sir."

Officer Kissinger walked up the stairs and the group was alone again. Mark noticed that Emolga fell asleep beside him, he jabbed his elbow into the Pokémon and stirred it awake, "Wake up Emolga, its sunset for crying out loud!"

"Emolga." Emolga grumbled as he sat upright.

"Don't give me that crap, I don't want you waking me up in the middle of the night well rested and-" Mark stopped when he heard a pop, "What's with the ketchup bottle!?"

Ash turned towards where Mark was looking at, and saw that Pikachu had a ketchup bottle in his hands. He remembered Pikachu somehow gotten a hold of a ketchup bottle back at the food market, he must have stashed it in the couch for later consumption.

"That's not how you eat ketchup," declared Mark, "Get over here!"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu cried as he held the ketchup bottle away from Mark.

Ash just sat there and watch Pikachu jump off the couch and took off, struggling to run on his hind legs as he held the ketchup bottle in his arms. Mark was on hot pursuit, chasing Pikachu around the house to grab the ketchup bottle. Ash ignored the commotion and thought about Tesla, the legendary Pikachu. The cops at the market had mistaken Pikachu as him, how many more people will make that mistake. Maybe tomorrow, they would go out somewhere where there isn't too many people. Just to avoid the drama of the nonsense.

He glanced at Emolga and saw that he fell back asleep, snoring loudly. How can anyone sleep with all that noise going on?

"Give me that ketchup bottle!" roared Mark.

"Pika!" cried Pikachu.

_This is a strange household,_ Ash thought, _Wait a second_.

"Mark," cried Ash, "Wait!"

**. . .**

He made his way to the residence in question, Tesla followed the scent and tracked down the people and Pokémon he saw back at the food market. Seeing another Pikachu did anything but thrill him. Though he does have to admit that it felt good to see another of his own kind around, but he had no major traits to share with this counterpart. Something made Tesla curious about the unfamiliar human and his Pikachu. Outsiders visiting an old friend of his dead trainer, the old Pikachu told himself that this may be worth investigating, since it had been decades for meeting with another member of his own kind.

He got on top of a recycling bin and looked through a window, standing on his toes for a better view. The blinds obstruct his view, but he did hear some commotion in there, the muffled screams of the other Pikachu and a somewhat frustrated human. Tesla felt something clicked in his head, his instincts were telling him something. He jumped off the recycling bin and took cover in the bushes at the backyard, then waited.

Sure enough, Tesla watched as Pikachu burst through the back door with Mark not far behind, "You shouldn't be drinking out of the ketchup bottle!" he cried.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu cried in terror, "Pika pika pika!"

_Why not you defend yourself you idiot? _Tesla thought as he stared at the other Pikachu.

The older Pikachu sat back and watched the show, almost laughing to himself from the humor of the situation. Mark chased Pikachu around, somewhat in circles. He got close a couple of times to swipe the ketchup bottle from his hands but Pikachu pulled it away.

These kids made reminded of him when he was their age. Just simple dumb kids, playing in the great outdoors without a care in the world. Often Irvin took him outside to play, but it was more like training. Tesla had little fun during the height of his glory years. All the training, all the education, everything Irvin made of him had paid off and made them both a legend.

The many Pokémon Leagues he had fought at went by as a blur, his only enjoyment was defeating his opponent. The way other Pokémon got knocked senseless from his quick attacks felt satisfying, it told him Irvin was doing a good job. But of course, it came with a cost. During Pokémon matches, Tesla would pull some muscles and tendons. When that happens in a middle of a match, he kept focusing on his goal of beating the opposing Pokémon. Only when the match is over, Tesla would tell Irvin about his injuries. The Pokémon doctor wasn't pleased as always, the injuries got so bad at times that it required surgery.

Despite the hardship, Tesla always loved Irvin and he loved him back. Back then it was all about the training, Irvin always made sure he was ready before a match. Tesla recalled that he didn't even eat Pokémon food, but rather some good old fashion protein fit for humans. Seemed that the extra calories didn't get entirely used, as the excess are either consumed by his intelligent brain or found their way around his aging waist. Tesla chuckled at the thought.

Every Pokémon is self-aware, no doubt about it. But to step back and take another look at the world requires a mental leap of epic proportions. The world Tesla saw haunted him. Sure everyone is happy, with Pokémon loving humans and vise versa. With the exception on appearance and abilities, the major difference between humans and Pokémon are their social status. The humans are the dominant creatures as Pokémon the lesser kind. He didn't realize it then, but soon realized it when Irvin...

_Don't think about it Tesla,_ the elder Pikachu told himself, _His time came, that's understandable_.

Pokémons who are under... How should he call it, the human spell? They're dependent on their trainers, every move in battle is directly told to them. They don't make the decisions, their decisions were decided for them. Though on occasion a Pokémon would make his own decisions in battle, thinking outside the box was a different matter entirely. It goes against the rules of the game. To Tesla, it's no longer a game. Not anymore. It's now survival.

Eventually the ketchup loving Pikachu's trainer came running outside and stopped Mark from chasing him, "Mark!"

"Okay Ash I give up," said Mark, "Your Pokémon can have his ketchup and eat it to."

"It's not about that," said Ash, "Do you know where Tesla lives?"

That got Tesla's attention, he sat up and leaned forward to better eavesdrop on the conversation, "Sort of," said Mark, "What are you planning?"

"Why not we go looking for him. We try to find him and figure out what's going on with him?"

"I doubt that we'll find him out there. Besides, I haven't seen him ever since I was born in Faraday City. Through all my life, Tesla is just a myth to me and it may be a myth."

_Your right about that one, Mark_. Tesla thought.

"But Wally-"

"Wally jumps at everyone, Lieutenant Kelly at the FCPD nearly fired him several months back for tackling an old lady. He's just a myth, Ash."

The two went silent for a moment, staring at each other in the eyes. That seemed a bit creepy, but Tesla seen creepier things in his time, "I have nothing planned for tomorrow," Ash broke the silence, "So why not you and me go searching around to see _if _Tesla is still around."

"Look Ash, even if he's real, this is a Pokémon who damages people psychologically. His electric attacks are so powerful, they damage _nerves_! You heard what my dad said about that guy who was recently attacked."

"But your family is well associated with his trainer, he shouldn't attack you."

Mark looked off into the side and took a deep breath, "He doesn't like people Ash," he said sternly, "He never had."

"Maybe my Pikachu can be the white flag."

"Pikachu?" Pikachu asked. Tesla saw that the younger Pikachu held the ketchup bottle upside down, unknowingly spilling the contents on the grass by his feet.

"Putting the same species of Pokémon together is not always a good idea," said Mark, "But maybe it would work. You know what, tomorrow we go out into the nearby forest and look for Tesla. Remember, we're just looking around if he's still around. Besides Pikachu, what other kind of Pokémon do you got?"

"I have an Oshawott, a Snivy, an Unfezant, a Pignite, and a Scraggy. Though most of my Pokémon are at home and a few more in Unova."

"Now _if _ Tesla does exist and he encounters us, we have a small army to fight back. Tesla's reputation precedes him, as far as I recall he never lost an offical Pokémon battle."

Pikachu tried to drink some more ketchup, but inadvertently bit the bottom of the bottle. When he saw the small pile of ketchup on the grass, his eyes bulge from freight. He was just about to plow his face into it when Ash picked him up just in time, "Come on Pikachu, let's go inside."

"Pikachu!" cried Pikachu, reaching an arm towards the ketchup puddle in a vain attempt to retrieve some.

"Why does your Pikachu have a love for ketchup by the way?" asked Mark.

"I have no idea. Why did you chase him anyway?"

"Cause ketchup is a condiment, drinking it straight from the bottle is improper."

"Pika!" Pikachu barked at him.

The two Pokémon trainers walked inside the house and shut the door behind him, Tesla waited for 30 minutes before crawling out. He looked up at the sky and saw the bright glow of artificial light from Faraday City, snuffing out all but the brightest stars and planets in the night sky.

Tesla crawled to one of the recycling bins and quietly opened the lid. This one was filled with paper, some of it looked like graded homework, _Is that a C+ on a math test? _Tesla thought sarcastically, _Wow._

He crawled out of the recycling bin and moved to the others. What do you know, no food. Tesla didn't like going hungry tonight, and its surely too risky to go back to the market. No, he got spooked there, the police might be still around. He hoped by following this group of humans and Pokémon would lead him to a show and something yummy, all he got was a show and a plot to search for him. But no food.

_Well, _Tesla thought, _If they want to find me, I'll give them reason not to find me a second time._

Of course, they only want to chat. But simple words, even if they're human, might not paint the whole picture. He must battle their Pokémon to get a feel of them first, then he'll make sense of the results later. Tesla sighed, just another record for his never-ending glory.

_Time to go home and rest_, He thought, _Once again I have another big day to remove the latest thorn on my side_.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	4. Chapter IV

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter IV_

_HONK! HONK! HONK! HONK! _

Ash shot out of bed from the noise, his ears blister as the sound-waves bounced around the room like crazy. Pikachu made a bee line for the door. When he jumped off the bed, the mouse Pokémon accidentally plowed his face into the wall. Ash fell out of bed entangled by two layers of blankets, he managed break free and discovered the loud honking noises were coming from the alarm clock. He slammed his fist on the snooze button, stopping the alarm.

"AHH!" Ash screamed as he gripped his hand, the alarm clock's bite was that strong.

He held his hand for a moment until most of the pain subsided, his ears still rang as he grabbed the blankets and tossed them back onto the bed. Ash pulled his pants on and took another look on the alarm clock, it was 7AM, "Why that loud!?" he asked the alarm clock in disbelief.

"Pikachu..." groaned Pikachu.

"Pikachu?"

Ash turned and saw his beloved buddy lying on the floor face up. His eyes were in spirals, like he was defeated in a Pokémon battle. His trainer noticed there was a cavity in the wall, somewhere about 25cm wide. It took him a moment to realize what happened to Pikachu, As quickly came to his aid and picked him up, "Pikachu, are you alright?"

Pikachu opened his eyes and smiled, "Pikachu." he simply said. Yeah, he was alright.

Ash let his Pokémon down and walked out of the room, just when he stepped out he heard a similar honking sound in the next room. He followed the sound to the room and head inside, Ash was at first flabbergasted at how messy it was. Dirty laundry littered the floor, empty soda cans covered the furniture, a pair of underpants was hanging off a lamp, and the pizza boxes from last night sat on the bed. It was like a bomb gone off with sheer force. Mark laid in the bed, snoring almost as loud as the alarm clock with his Emolga snuggled beside him. Both unfazed by the alarm, were they actually sleeping through the noise? Ash ran up and hit the snooze button, but not as hard like the other one.

Mark sat up and yawned, then turned his sleepy eyes towards Ash, "Morning." he simply say.

"What kind of alarm clock are those?" Ash said, screaming almost.

"Two car horns were built into them," said Mark, "I made them myself."

"Why?"

"I'm a heavy sleeper, and so is Emolga."

Emolga was still asleep, evident by his loud snoring. Mark grabbed him with both hands and shook him hard, "Wake up Emolga!"

All he got in response was groans. Mark laughed as he picked up his Pokémon and held him like an infant, "This is pretty much what he does half the day."

"How can he sleep through that racket?" asked Ash.

"I have no clue, but I know what will get him up."

Mark opened up the nightstand drawer and pulled out a 9 Volt battery, he pried Emolga's mouth open and placed the electrodes right on his tongue. An audible shock sounded. Emolga stirred and his eyes blinked open, he shook his head to knock out the sleep as he stretched his arms and legs, "Morning sleepy head." said Mark.

Emolga closed his eyes and tried to go back to sleep, irritating his trainer, "Oh you gotta be kidding me, look's like I have to get the car battery again."

Emolga's eyes shot wide open in complete panic, "Emolga! Emolga!" he begged.

Mark laughed, "That's more like it. Come on Ash, let's see what's for breakfast."

Ash followed Mark downstairs and into the kitchen. The kitchen was quite modern despite the natural wood furniture that enclosed some of it. The refrigerator was high-tech, the microwave was hi-tech, the stove uses induction technology instead of the classic heat. The dishwasher though, despite it being new, seemed quite well used. A lot of the kitchen appliances were automated, even the trash can was automated.

The greatest irony in the kitchen was the temperature difference, it felt colder than the rest of the house. Ash nearly shivered, it felt almost as cold as last night. As he approached the wall counter, he felt an even colder pocket of air on its surface.

_Odd. _Ash thought.

Mark sat Emolga down at the natural dining wood table, the Pokémon's mouth watered as Mark dug into the pantry, "So what's for breakfast?" asked Ash.

"Whatever you're in the mood for." said Mark.

Ash saw that Mark hadn't changed into pajamas last night, he still wore the clothes from yesterday. He watched as Mark pulled out a can of sausages from the pantry and opened up the refrigerator, where he pulled out a loaf of bread, a stick of butter, and a gallon of milk. For the most part it looked like Mark was making breakfast for himself. Pikachu came around and took a seat at the table, he kept himself occupied by running his fingers across the bark at the edge of the table. It looked like that Pikachu had shaken off the daze from his battering ram accident in the bedroom earlier.

Mark went back into the pantry and looked back inside, "Hey Emolga, you know where the peanut butter is?"

"Emolga." the flying squirrel Pokémon sounded like he didn't have a clue.

"Ugh, that's the third jar that vanished this month!"

"You have Pokémon food?" asked Ash.

Mark turned and looked at Ash, "No, never bought any at all. Just feed your Pokémon regular food."

That surprised Ash, even though he had experienced this situation before, "You don't feed your Pokémon, Pokémon food?"

"As much as I'm concerned, they can eat pretty much about anything. But if they ate something that their system doesn't agree with, I have an antidote that will take care of that," Mark let out a wink towards Emolga and the Pokémon winked back, "Besides, you should let your Pokémon flex their taste buds once in a while, let them enjoy life a little bit."

Mark prepared a couple of slices of toast bread and smeared butter on it, then sprinkled cinnamon on it. He sat them on a plate and handed it to Emolga, where he took a huge bite out of a slice. Ash decided to make his own breakfast. As Mark makes his, Ash cooked up some eggs on the induction cook top. Once he had the eggs done, he toast some bread and made cooked some bacon as well. Within a moment, the toast was done and he finally put together his breakfast. He wondered to himself when was the last time he made his own breakfast, "What do you want for breakfast Pikachu?" Ash asked.

"Pikachu." Pikachu pointed at Emolga's food.

"Looks like Pikachu want whatever Emolga's eating," said Mark, "Trust me, he'll love cinnamon toast."

**. . .**

Tesla stapled the last bit of wire into its post, it took him all night just to repair one section of a single fence and his stubby hands cried along the way. It was simple galvanized wire, horizontally spread across the forest while being 30cm from the other. This fence formed the boundary of his "safe zone", located somewhere around the heart of the forest ironically next to Faraday City's suburbia. Such fences would need barbed wire on the top to prevent anyone climbing on it, but they won't be necessary for what Tesla was planning.

After rechecking his handiwork, Tesla got back into the safe zone's perimeter and approached a small makeshift dome hut. Inside the hut contained a portable generator, hooked up to the fence outside with several linked jumper cables. The hut insulate the portable generator to cancel out most of the noise, making it more stealthy. A small fan on the side blows hot air out of the hut as cold air seeped through the crooks and crannies, that prevents things from overheating inside. On the outside, it showed little evidence that it was artificially crafted by an eccentric Pokémon. Tesla made sure it was so well camouflaged that not even the human eye can pick it up, any Pokémon flying by would have no clue of its existence whatsoever.

Tesla gave the ignition cord a few tugs to get the generator to start, the old genny sputtered after a few tries before turning over. When it began to roar, Tesla walked outside to find the small light bulbs on the fence's posts lit up. The electric fence was now live with power.

He returned to the electric fence where Tesla grabbed a stick, he tossed it at the fence. Upon contact, the stick lit up with light and was instantly fried by the electricity. Not only is the fence live, its also powerful. 1,000 amps with the speed of 10,000 volts powerful.

_Well that should keep most nosy intruders out_. Tesla chuckled at the thought.

The forest was 5 square kilometers big. Everyday Tesla defends the area from humans and other Pokémon by placing traps all over the place. Most of the traps were crafted from simple trash, such as fish hooks hanging from the tree branches, large pit falls, etc. His electrifyed safe zone was only 500 square meters, which make's it easy for him to maintain the electric generators that powered it. Few humans and their Pokémon ever got this deep into the forest, and none of them made it beyond the fence. The safe zone may be the only place in the world where he can roam freely without being spotted by Pokémon trainers.

_I should have enough bio-diesel to last me for a while_, thought Tesla, _I may need to get more soon_.

Tesla was tired of fighting for his life, or what was left of it. He never wanted things to be like this from the start, somehow he felt no empathy for many of the humans who try to take his freedom. But for this particular trainer, Ash Ketchum, was trying something none of the previous trainers before him tried. The fact that he wants to chat with him doesn't change the fact that he's coming after him, and that young Pikachu of his will surely stir things up a bit. Tesla readjusted his eye goggles and blinked, at least his old age hadn't come down on his head just yet. He still had plenty of fight left in him, unless his joints say otherwise.

There was a major road system that shoots straight through the heart of the forest, only about 8 meters wide. It was once a regular trade route until he came along, now the road was shut down by the local government and a new route was built nearby. It was a simple dirt road, nothing special about it. Since humans like to stick to their man-made routes, this single road was where most of the intrusions occur. Tesla took his time to trap it, he done his work so well that it stopped a lot of the smart trainers from using it. Chances are that this Ash would use this very road to find him, maybe he'll find him there.

Tesla climbed up a tree and managed to get on the other side of his electric fence. Even though he was immune to the electricity, he didn't wanna waste its energy, so he used common sense to get to the other side. It took him a few seconds to leave the safe zone.

_Bring it on Pokémon trainer_, Tesla thought, _Maybe you'll lead me to a trap, maybe not. Either way, you'll be wishing you haven't come out here at all_.

**. . .**

"So we can walk from here?" Ash asked.

"It's not that far," said Mark, "We're in the outskirts of the city after all."

"Emolga." said Emolga as he rides on Mark's shoulder.

"You know Emolga," his trainer said, "Sometimes I wonder about you."

"I haven't seen your dad this morning." said Ash.

"He gets up early, sometimes it's just another hard day at work so it demands his full attention. On his free time, he tried to piece together a pattern in order to catch the mythical Tesla. So far the pattern's at random, Tesla is smart enough to cover his tracks. Maybe he doesn't even exist anymore."

"What started all this, Mark?"

"My dad's generation grew up being a fan of Irvin Westinghouse, since his dad was Irvin's oldest and closest friend. Even though Tesla had long since retired after Irvin's death, his popularity is still at an all time high, despite the fact that he supposed destroyed the lives of the trainers who try to catch him."

"Is he... bad?"

"I don't think so, none of the trainers who tried to catch him reported of him making a first move on them. It's always self-defense, so Tesla might not be evil, he was simply provoked."

"And we're not going to provoke him." said Ash.

"Of course we're not," said Mark, "Because there's a high chance we may never run across him at all."

"True..."

"Pikachu." Pikachu muttered softly to agree with Ash.

They made a turn and stepped onto a dirt road, up ahead the forest looms closer. The tall trees was starting to dominate the sky. Pikachu saw a couple of signs stating that the forest was city property and not to trespass, ending with the _Violators will be prosecuted _line. He and his trainer had trespassed before, but not like this. Pikachu believed this was Tesla's home, that's what his instincts told him.

"Does this forest have a name?" asked Ash.

"No," said Mark, "Interesting enough, this place gets a lot of lighting strikes during thunderstorms yet the forest doesn't burn. The electrical activity can be amazing around here, if you're brave enough to stand and watch. Nobody goes out here because it's city property so it's off-limits to the public, but it's also rumored to be the current home of Tesla."

**. . .**

_There they are_, Tesla thought as he sat in a tree to watch the human's approach, _I've been expecting you guys._

Tesla retreated into the forest by hopping his way from tree to tree, when he felt he got far enough he climbed back down to earth. He quickly rushed towards his ambush position, once there Tesla stepped away from the road where they shouldn't see him and crouched. Now all he had to do was wait.

**. . .**

Pikachu's instincts told him that they were being watched. As much as he loved the forest, this one felt empty. He heard no sounds other than the wind blowing through the trees. Was the forest devoid of Pokémon life? Pikachu tightly held Ash's shoulder from the thought, his trainer soon took notice of his anxiety and patted him on the head, "He's not going to hurt us Pikachu, he might not even be around anymore."

"Pika." Pikachu whispered.

_I wish I can tell you I've already met him, Ash_. Pikachu thought.

"Emolga." said Emolga, sounding like he was anxious as well.

"You big baby," Mark teased, "Tesla might not exist, my dad is just wasting his time on this case."

"How far are we going to walk Mark?" asked Ash.

"As far as we can go or when he shows up."

"That's not much of a plan, what if things go wrong?"

"Then we run our butts out of this forest and head back to town. You know, my Dad always said to stay away from this forest when I was young but not ever since I turned 13. I haven't disobeyed him, until now," he remained silent for a moment, maybe reconsidering what they were doing, "You know Ash, just for the record, this was your idea. I hope your judgment doesn't betray you."

The sound of a twig snapping stopped the group cold, they held their breath and listened for further noise. Nothing. Pikachu felt his heart race as the adrenaline started flowing, _This isn't going to be good._ He thought.

"Pikachu?" the mouse Pokémon whispered.

"I'm not sure what's that, Pikachu." Ash whispered back.

A full minute went by and nothing happened, "Hm," Mark said with normal volume, "Must be our paranoia. Come on guys, we had that coming. Admit it."

"Emolga," chuckled Emolga, "Emo Emolga."

"Okay," agreed Ash, "It's just our imagination."

Pikachu wasn't convinced, twigs just don't snap with that tone, "Pika pika!"

"Easy Pikachu," said Ash, "That could be nothing."

"Ash," said Mark, "Pikachus have excellent hearing, so he may be getting some early warning of this."

"He's just as paranoid as we are."

"True, over something that's a generation ago. This blasted forest is city property and we're trespassing. We're not supposed to be here."

"You said that nobody goes out here, so we might not get caught!"

"You brought us out here!"

"True, but this isn't-"

Mark and Ash were so busy arguing at each other that they didn't see it coming, but Pikachu did. He managed to jump off of Ash in time as a yellow blur struck the trainer in the leg and knocked him airborne, he made a single flip before crashing back the ground with a thud. Pikachu saw Emolga tossed into the air, the flying-squirrel Pokémon couldn't stabilize his flight in time and fell straight back to earth. Pikachu rushed underneath him and caught Emolga just in time, the force of Emolga landing on him however knocked Pikachu off-balance and the two Pokémon collapsed to the ground. Mark crashed onto his back after being sent into the air, just beside Ash. The two trainers groaned in pain as they struggled to get back up to their feet.

"What was that?" Ash asked as he had a hand on his rump.

"I don't know," grumbled Mark, "But it felt like we got run over by something."

Ash turned to Pikachu, "Pikachu, are you okay?"

Pikachu pushed Emolga off of his back and stood up on his hind legs, "Pikachu."

"Emolga." Emolga thanked Pikachu for the close save and shook Pikachu's hand.

"Pikachu." Pikachu said you're welcome.

Pikachu looked down the road felt his muscles stiffen. There he was, sitting right in the middle. He was in the pounce position with angry eyes, a clear sign of aggression. If Tesla wasn't angry before, he was sure now. Ash and Mark quickly took notice and stepped back, giving the legendary Pikachu some space, "Tesla," muttered Mark, "You're Tesla Westinghouse?

Tesla nodded his head in response.

Mark turned to Ash, his face showed complete disbelief that stretched as high as the moon "I hope you're happy Ash, we found him."

Ash turned his attention to Tesla and gulped, Pikachu held his breath and watched. This was what Ash came out here for, but he didn't expect he would encounter Tesla _that _soon. Was Tesla expecting them?

"Look Tesla," Ash began, "We just wanna-"

He didn't get to finish as a sudden Thunderbolt knocked him back. Pikachu was horrified as he watched Ash and Mark blown back 5 meters. This was supposed to be peaceful, but now the situation had changed. What was very strange about the Thunderbolt was that it was how it glowed. It wasn't yellow, but more like a bluish-white. That kind of electricity was normally found in severe thunderstorms. The sound was also unusual, it was a loud buzz at a certain frequency. No electric-type Pokémon can produce such sound. This was obviously no ordinary Pikachu, his electricity explains pretty much why he was legendary.

A sudden surge of courage rose up and Pikachu grabbed it with sheer might, "Pikachu!" Pikachu roared, he balled his fist and turned to face Tesla. The other Pikachu just stared at him, not taking him seriously, _Come on_, Pikachu thought, _Show me what you got_.

"Pikachu," cried Ash, "Use your Thunderbolt!"

"Emolga," said Mark, "Thundershock, now!"

Both Pikachu and Emolga lit up with yellow electricity before unleashing a two-punch electric attack. Tesla dodged the blast of lightning and it struck the ground without harm. The goggle wearing Pikachu used Quick Attack for his turn, Pikachu couldn't react in time as Tesla came in with impossible speed, he slammed him so hard that he was knocked back. Pikachu crashed into a nearby tree and flopped on his face, he was down for a moment before getting back on all fours, "Pikachu!" he cursed in rage.

Before Pikachu can retaliate, he saw Tesla used Iron Tail and landed it straight down on Emolga's head. The Pokémon didn't see it coming until he took the full force to the head. Emolga dropped to his knees and collapsed, simply defeated, "Emolga," cried Mark, "No! Oh crap, um... Everybody, get in there and help Emolga!"

Mark sat up and pulled out three Poké balls. Three Pokémon materialized before their trainer, the Magnemite Mark had talked about, and ironically, a small Plusle and Minun team, "Magnemite." said Magnemite.

"Minun!" said Minun.

"Plusle!" said Plusle.

"Stand your ground guys," said Mark, "Let Ash take his turn!"

Ash scrambled back to his feet and pulled out a Poké ball, "Oshawott, I choose you!"

Ash tossed in the Poke ball and Oshawott came out a second later, "Oshawott!" the Pokémon chanted.

"Oshawott, use-"

Before Ash could give the command, Oshawott unleashed Aqua Jet on Tesla. The Pikachu did an impressive dodge-roll out-of-the-way and used Thundershock on the Aqua Jet. The electricity traveled down the Aqua Jet and reached Oshawott, giving him a bad shock that forced him on his rear, "I was hoping for you to turn the tide to our favor Ash!" said Mark, somewhat joking and being serious at the same time.

"Where did you get Plusle and Minun?" Ash asked.

"I bought them from their previous trainer, can we talk about this later?"

Tesla used Thunderbolt again, Pikachu's eyes went wide as he watched bluish-white lighting arched across the air and struck Oshawott. What was terrifying about it was that the Thunderbolt lasted longer than usual, Pikachu can feel the heat from the lighting coming off the bolt. The sheer power Tesla's electricity displayed made Pikachu freeze up.

"Pikachu," he heard Ash call him, "Defend Oshawott! Use Quick Attack on Tesla!"

"Pikachu!" the mouse Pokémon obeyed.

He sprinted at Tesla with full force. But Tesla was a few steps ahead, and dodged the attack in time. Pikachu didn't stop in time when Tesla used his own Quick Attack on him again. Once again, Pikachu plowed into another tree and collapsed, feeling more pain than last time. But he wasn't going to give up, not what Tesla did to Ash. He looked up and saw Oshawott laying on his back, motionless, "Magnemite, use Magnet Pull to pin Tesla down. Plusle and Minun, use Thundershock on him and keep at it as long as you can!"

"Magnemite!" said Magnemite.

Tesla's body suddenly glowed a soft light blue, Magnemite pinned the legendary Pikachu to the ground with no difficulty. Ash's Pikachu noticed that his counterpart wasn't struggling very much, he was saving his energy, "Plusle," said Plusle as he unleashed his Thundershock.

"Minun!" said Minum as he followed suit

The combined Thundershock struck Tesla within a second, the Pikachu didn't flinch as he struggled to resist. It began to appear that we was about to give up, "Yeah," cheered Mark, "Keep at it guys!"

Pikachu tried to join in but couldn't, he tried to get up but felt a sharp pain in his back, forcing him back down on his belly, _My back is sprained! _Pikachu screamed in his head. Now all he could do was watch.

In an instant, Tesla turned the tables again. Bright white lightning shot out from him and struck Magnemite, Plusle, and Minun. Instead of last time, this was more powerful and aggressive as it gave off a loud "crack", similar to thunder. Plusle and Minun screamed in agony as Magnemite malfunctioned, the electric/ steel Pokémon fell from the sky and dropped to the ground with a ding. 30 seconds later, the Thunderbolt ceased and the two remaining Pokémon passed out.

Tesla panted hard as he stared at his work, Ash and Mark just stood there with jaws dropped as they stared at their defeated Pokémon. Pikachu still had some fight left in him despite the injury, "Pika." he groaned as he struggled onto his feet, he couldn't believe how weak he felt. The pain in his back made it difficult to get back up, but he kept trying anyway.

Tesla glanced at him and stood on his hind legs, Pikachu stopped as he approached within arm's reach and made full eye contact for an unusually long moment. Tesla got a good look at him, almost in curiosity. Pikachu wondered what he was thinking, hopefully nothing bad or something similar.

Tesla held up his index finger, just high enough for Pikachu to see. Then hovered his finger over Pikachu's nose and touched it. "Sssaaa!" Pikachu squealed as Tesla surged electricity into him.

It wasn't strong enough to cause damage, but it sure made Pikachu drop back on his stomach in defeat. Satisfied that it was once again the victor, Tesla got back on all fours and vanished into the vegetation of the forest. The battle was over.

Ash ran up to Pikachu and picked him up, "Are you okay Pikachu?" he asked.

Pikachu shook his head, "Pikachu, Pika P!"

Pikachu gestured to his back and Ash felt around, he winced when his little buddy squealed from pain.

"Ash," said Mark, his voice trembled in fear, "We gotta get out of here, Tesla screwed our Pokémon over! They need medical attention!"

"Right." said Ash as calmly as he can.

Ash scooped up Oshawott in his arms as Mark picked up his Pokémon, "Come on guys," said Mark as he struggled to carry Emolga, Magnemite, Plusle, and Minun, "Stay with me... Stay with me!"

"I got you guys," said Ash as he clutched Pikachu and Oshawott in each arm, "Don't worry Pikachu, just hang in there!"

_I'm not going to pass out Ash! _Pikachu thought, even though the pain he was having from every square centimeter of his body was trying to knock him out. He was badly injured before, but this sort of pain was new. The mouse Pokémon wondered to himself how did he got himself into this situation, he got his answer when he looked back at Ash.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	5. Chapter V

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter V_

Ash sat in the lobby of Faraday City Pokémon Hospital. Mark sat next to him, murmuring unintelligible speech as his hands trembled from anxiety. It wasn't easy getting their Pokémon here. They carried their Pokémon to the street and Mark dialed 9-1-1, within minutes an ambulance arrived and took their Pokémon in. A fellow police officer gave them a ride to the Pokémon Center where they waited in the lobby for the outcome. All that took about an hour.

_It's common_, thought Ash as he stared at the wall, _We're not the only ones with injured Pokémon_.

Ash was well experienced for having Pokémon in this kind of situation, but not Mark. He clearly never had to deal with injured Pokémon before, Mark struggled not to lose his head as the thought of his beloved Pokémon dying attacked every nerve cell in his brain.

"Emolga is my best friend," Mark muttered, "I fed him, I bathed him, I loved him-"

Ash stopped him by putting his hand on his shoulder, "Mark, it's common."

Mark shrugged Ash's hand off, "I know, it's the injuries that I'm worried about. This isn't Pokémon being beaten senseless here. I heard about the stories where Tesla attacked Pokémon until he broke them _physically_. Fractured ribs, dislocated shoulders, you name it. I didn't believe it until it happened to Emolga. I never believed it... I thought it all the stories were made up..."

"I never heard of any Pikachu who would perform Iron Tail and hammer it straight down. It's easier just to swing it like a baseball bat, but Tesla swung it like he was chopping wood."

"We should had gotten out of there before catastrophe struck. No wait, we shouldn't have been there at all."

"He attacked when he saw us arguing, we would've been more prepared if we stuck to our simple plan."

"Tesla's just too strong for us, he's too strong for anybody to challenge. Just why in the world did he have to incapacitate my Pokémon like that."

It became difficult for Mark to hold back his tears, he sniffled and blew his nose on some tissue paper, "My dad is going to kill me. First he's going to ask if I'm alright, then he's going to lecture me and threaten to confiscate all my Pokémon... Or whatever Pokémon that survived Tesla's wrath. I don't have too many friends Ash, me and Emolga are very close. He's my bestest friend!"

Ash remembered Matt Kissinger on the bus, and soon thought of a plan, "Call your Grandpa to come here," he said calmly, "He'll might help sort this mess out."

"I'm surprised that you're not even worried about your Pokémon."

"I'm used to this kind of stress, but it still hurts though. It comes with the bond, it's to be expected."

"Tesla seemed pretty fond of your Pikachu. Well they're both Pikachus, maybe he saw himself through your Pikachu's eyes. Your white-flag theory may be blown out of the water, but maybe your Pikachu can still defuse him. I'm just saying, Tesla's curiosity may be the key. I'll figure it out later, right now I want to be sure that my Pokémon are alright."

"Call your Grandpa." Ash said again.

"Okay, I will."

Mark dried his tears and fished out his cell phone, he dialed in the number and held the phone to his ear, "Grandpa Matt," said Mark, "This is Mark, I need your help... I can't explain everything on the phone, there's just no time. I need you here please!... Okay, love you."

Mark hanged up the phone, "He's on his way."

The door to the trauma care center opened up and Nurse Joy stepped on through, "Ash Ketchum and Mark Kissinger?" she called out.

"Right here." said Ash as the two approach.

"How's my Pokémon," Mark asked, "Are they alright?"

"Easy there. Come, you can see them."

The boys followed Nurse Joy through a maze of corridors and walked into a small room. Pikachu sat on a bench, he had several white band-aids on him but seemed alright. He nibbled on an apple as he sat back, taking it easy. Emolga was another story, he laid on a bed with bandages around his forehead. Tears slithered down his face from the pain, but the rest of his body seemed okay. Plusle and Minun sat in a double bed, they had breathing tubes down their throats and bandages around their chest. Oshawott laid in his separate bed, not on any obvious life support system. Ash recalled that Tesla unloaded a lot of electricity on them, it clearly taken its toll. Magnemite was no where present in the room, maybe he was in a separate room since it wasn't big enough to fit all of them.

"Where's Magnemite?" Mark asked.

Nurse Joy held her head down, "I'm sorry, we did the best we could."

Mark squint his eyes in an effort to accept the news, "Spare me the details Nurse Joy, how's my other Pokémon?"

"Plusle and Minun are in a coma, it will be a while until they wake up. They have some ruptured blood vessels around their chest and limbs, but we already taken care of that. For Emolga, the blow to his head didn't break anything. No bleeding in the brain, but there's a gash in his skull that we needed to fix up. He should be alright."

"How's my Pikachu and Oshawott?" asked Ash.

"We looked Pikachu over and found a sprain in his back, we fixed it up with a steroid shot. Oshawott is in a coma, but there's no other injuries."

When Pikachu finished his apple, he sat the core aside before finally noticing his trainer was in the room. His eyes lit up brighter than the stars, "Pikachu!"

Pikachu jumped into Ash's arms and Ash held him tight, "Good to see you're okay buddy." he laughed.

"Pika pika!"

Emolga stirred and his eyes flickered open, "Emolga?" asked Mark.

Emolga stared at Mark for a brief second before he burst out crying, his tears trailed down his face almost in a water fall fashion. The flying-squirrel Pokémon held up his arms at Mark, begging to be held, "Is it alright if I can pick him up?" Mark asked Nurse Joy.

"Yes," said Nurse Joy, "He and Pikachu are free to leave, though the others will have to stay for a few days."

Mark picked up Emolga and cradled him in his arms, "Emolga, it's alright. I got you, don't worry!"

"Emolga!" he sobbed as he burrowed his head into Mark's shoulder.

"What exactly happened?" Nurse Joy asked.

"We've stumbled into Tesla," said Mark, "Before we can even do anything, he attacked. We called out most of our Pokémon, and you know the final result."

"I'm sorry about your Magnemite, I wish we can do more but-"

"Spare me the details please!" Mark took a deep breath and sighed, "Can you please give me a call when my Pokémon are better?"

"What's your phone number?" Nurse Joy asked.

Mark gave her his phone number, "If Ash's Oshawott's better, call that number as well."

"I will."

As Mark and Ash head back to the lobby, Emolga's crying softened but kept at a steady pace, "Why are you crying Emolga?"

"Emolga." muttered Emolga, he tapped his ears then dragged his 3 fingered hands down like water.

"No, your brains are not going to leak out of your ears."

"Emo?"

"Yes, positive."

A silly smile stretched across Emolga's face, "Emolga!"

Mark chuckled as Emolga rest his head on his shoulder again, "I swear Ash, sometimes Emolga isn't very bright at times. Had your Pikachu ever had a dumb moment?"

"I don't recall of one," Ash lied, "Not that I remember one."

Pikachu jabbed his elbow into Ash's chest, "Pikachu!" the mouse Pokémon winked.

He climbed out of Ash's arms and back onto Ash's shoulder, Ash tried to suppress his laugh for a moment. He stopped laughing when Matt came hurrying through the front door in a state of panic, "Grandpa!" said Matt as he used a free arm to hug him.

"Mark," said Matt, "What happened?"

"We stumbled into Tesla. He killed my Magnemite and injured the rest, I'm able to take Emolga home but Plusle and Minun were hospitalized for their injuries."

"Tesla did this?" Matt asked.

"We went to a forest to see where he was," said Ash, "But he attacked us first. He's just so angry, I don't know how we can get through to him."

"That wasn't a very smart move, but the fact that Tesla attacked first and you had no intentions on capturing him... It might be a sign that he's getting more aggressive," Matt turned to Mark, "Does your father know?"

"A cop took us over here." said Mark.

Matt went silent for a moment, "Wait, did you say that you encountered Tesla?"

"Yes."

"You sure it was him?"

"He was a Pikachu wearing goggles, and shoots out white lighting. Not to mention he didn't say a single word in the process."

"After all these years, I thought he passed away. I wonder if the grief of his trainer's passing is still sore on him."

"He seemed angry," said Ash, "Very angry."

"Pika." Pikachu nodded.

"Well... I'll take you guys back to the house. Once there, we'll figure something out."

"Thanks Grandpa." said Mark.

"Emolga!" Emolga smiled.

**. . .**

Tesla crawled through one of many alleyways of the city, his long walk tired him enough to lean against the wall of a building to rest. He felt sore, as usual. The recent battle made him more tired and hungry than what he normally felt. He took a deep breath and exhaled before getting back to his feet, _This old body is having a tough time right now_. Tesla thought as he approached a dumpster.

His Post-Westinghouse League years wore him down so much, that every time he got up in the morning he wondered if this was it. It wasn't healthy for him to go out and scavenge food like this, yet he had no choice. He was a wanted Pokémon, an "outlaw" wanted because he was valuable. He hated people, yet he wasn't proud of what he done to them. They're all out trying to get him, for what? He entertained them, won many Pokémon matches along the way. Pleased them. Gave them inspiration for their dreams. It's what Irvin wanted, it was what everyone wanted...

The old Pikachu jumped on top of the dumpster and pried open the plastic lid. He's in luck. Inside the dumpster was some food scraps leftover by some wasteful humans, maybe even by some Pokémon – _their_ Pokémon perhaps. Whatever the case, they unknowingly left some behind for a stray Pokémon like him to eat. Tesla licked his lips, this beats boring half-rotten fruit any day.

_Eat all you can, while you can._

Tesla crawled into the dumpster and gravity shut the lid on him. He doesn't mind the darkness, it feels kinda private. He shift through the food scraps to see what's available, seems fresh enough. Tesla picked up a partially eaten cheeseburger and took a bite, it tasted great. Better yet, it's still warm.

_Beats eating Pokémon Food_, Tesla thought, _This should give me some more energy to last me a few more days, hopefully._

Tesla closed his eyes and thought back into his memories, looking for something that might be useful for him. But no, just the usual memories. He remembered his last Pokémon League match quite well, he had long forgotten what it was called but he knew almost every detail of it. It was a huge Pokémon battle arena, stuffed with maybe 50,000 people. Maybe there are million more of them watching on TV. His opponent was yet another teenager who wanted to be a Pokémon Champion. For these kind of special opponents, Irvin chose him. Tesla smirked as he stood there confidently, trying to defy his old age. It was even crippling his trainer, and it wasn't pretty. Irvin was coughing pretty bad, even complained of chest pain. Tesla thought it was nothing, but deep down he knew his trainer's time was coming. Back then he was in denial, _Just another common cold._ Tesla had thought.

The young Pokémon trainer's initial choice was a smart one, a Gigalith. They're not too big, but they have enough power to destroy mountains. Tesla convinced himself it was nothing, he had enough power to destroy cities, but only if he wanted to. The match started off with the usual back and forth moves, Gigalith tried to do a Headbutt on him. Tesla of course dodged and electrocuted his behind. The trainer tried out a few exacerbated commands when, after 5 minutes into the match, Tesla has remained untouched. A Smack Down, a Tackle, and a Sandstone later, Tesla remained untouched and unleashed a few powerful blows on Gigalith.

It took one miscalculated move that turned the tables on Tesla, Gigalith headbutted him when he went where he didn't expected to go. Tesla flopped onto the arena floor hard, then Gigalith took his massive foot and pinned him down. Everyone was at the edge of their seat, waiting for the inevitable moment where Tesla lost his very first match. Gigalith was young, Tesla was old. His fleshy body is no match for steel and rock. Tesla felt how much it hurt, he let the audience had their fun until he pulled out an unexpected move. He managed to slip out of Gigalith's foot, grabbed the rim around the rock Pokémon's foot, and used all of his strength to flip him on his back.

Gigalith went flying into the air, Tesla felt satisfied by getting a brief glimpse of the audience's priceless look on their faces. Right before Gigalith crashed onto the floor, Tesla jumped up and do Iron Tail upon Gigalith. He embedded Gigalith's back into the floor of the arena. For the final insult, Tesla jumped onto Gigalith's belly and held up a couple of devil horns gestures in each hand. The crowd cheered loudly and the teenager's eyes went big from disbelief. But Gigalith wasn't out, yet. He thrust himself out of the small hole and chucked Tesla back onto the floor, Gigalith jumped straight into the air and tried to body slam him. Tesla acted fast and scrambled out-of-the-way before jumping straight up over Gigalith and doing a combination of an Energy Ball with an Iron Tail. It is rare for a Pokémon to use two moves at once, but not Tesla. He only pulls such a stunt to give his opponent the final blow.

Tesla opened his eyes as he heard footsteps approaching, he held his breath and waited for it to past. The sound went past the dumpster and eventually faded away. Tesla realized he was wasting his opportunity to eat, so he resumed. He ate all the food scraps he can until his stomach was stuffed, Tesla sat back and enjoyed the moment of a yet another rare opportunity in being full. Feeling good about himself, _This will all keep my energy up_. He thought.

His private moment was interrupted when the dumpster's lid flew open, letting in enough light to nearly blind him.

"What the?" said a voice.

When Tesla's eyes adjust, he saw it was a human, a sanitation worker for Faraday City. He must had came around for his scheduled shift. There was no time to think, Tesla scrambled out of the dumpster and jumped onto the pavement of the alleyway. The trash guy spun around, still completely shocked at his finding. Tesla stood his ground on all fours, glaring at the unfortunate human to back off. The human held up his gloved hands and backed away towards the dump truck, where his fellow co-workers wisely did nothing nothing but watch.

_Now be a good boy and don't follow me_. Tesla thought.

Once the way was clear, Tesla bolt down the alleyway and headed for safety, "Call the police," screamed the sanitation worker, "Tesla's here!"

_Why won't they just leave me alone? _Tesla thought as he continued to run.

His big meal gave him enough energy to make the run, for a moment a part of his youth returned. He continued running down the crummy alley, making a few turns along the way. Just when he reached the other end, he skid to a stop as Faraday City SWAT blocked his path. They had riot shields and thick armor, simple equipment to protect their fragile bodies. They had out a couple of Magnetons out, and a Herdier.

Tesla had many encounters with the SWAT team before. Yet they were extremely rare, happening only once every few years. Everytime there was a SWAT team encounter, chaos erupts. Tesla usually get's away, but this time they caught him at the worst possible time, to much of his frustration.

"You have nowhere to run," said some SWAT guy on a megaphone, "Puts your hands up!"

Tesla heard them close in from behind, he knew he was surrounded. It was a Pokémon standoff. As much as Tesla hates having such standoffs with humans, he hated them even more when they had submachine guns trained on him, _Oh sure,_ thought Tesla, _Threaten to shoot me with your pea shooters. That makes you feel so powerful, huh?_

At first, a part of Tesla doubt that he would escape this. He had been on the run for so long that it may be his time to go. Tesla held his breath and waited for them to make a move, but they just sat there, _What does fate have in store for me?_

A door opened up and a big guy came walking through, "Get back inside civilian!" called out an officer.

Seeing all the cops made the guy freeze, as he figure out what to do Tesla made his move. He shot right through the open door and inside the building, a cop let loose a stray round and accidentally shot the guy in the leg, _Thanks buddy. _Tesla thought as the guy collapsed drop to the ground screaming.

Tesla shot through the building and made it back to the street. When he saw police cars with their flashing light and sirens blazing, Tesla knew he can't outrun them all, nor was he was in the mood for a dramatic final stand. He looked around for another opportunity, and eventually found a storm gutter. It wasn't exactly big enough for his stout body, but it's wide enough. That drain may be the only option he has.

"FCPD!" screamed a voice, followed by several guns cocking, "Put your hands up!"

_Make this work Tesla_, the old Pikachu thought has he stared down several barrels on his left and right, _You're only chance_.

With shots ringing through his ears, Tesla dart towards the storm gutter and squeezed through, vanishing into the street below.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	6. Chapter VI

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter VI_

When the group made it back to the Kissinger residence, they were surprised to find a FCPD squad car parked in the drive way, "Dad's home," Mark said, "That's unusual."

"So he knows then," said Matt, "Let's go see what he thinks."

Matt parked the car and the group head inside, they saw Kissinger on his cell phone. He tried to pull out his hair as he spoke into it, "What happened?... Damn... Okay, just give me a moment. My son and father's here, bye."

Officer Kissinger hung up the phone and hugged his son, "I heard what happened Mark, are you alright?"

"Yeah, but two of my Pokémon are in the hospital and one is in the morgue."

Kissinger was surprised, "Which one?"

"Magnemite."

"It's foolish of you to go out there looking for Tesla," he glanced at Ash, "But at least you didn't leave home alone."

"I always have company with me." said Ash.

Kissinger returned his attention to Mark, "Now what were you doing out looking for Tesla anyway?"

"Me and Ash were out searching for him so we can talk," said Mark, "He wanted to know if he's still alive, I personally doubted Tesla's still alive until we saw him face to face. He attacked us first and took out our Pokémon, then ran off into the forest. The rumors were true after all."

"He always hated people, no wonder he attacked you. He attacked you first, you say? Well, he must be getting more aggressive."

"Son," said Matt, "When we came in here you were on the phone, what was all that about?"

"Tesla was spotted in the city again," said Kissinger, "The police nearly had him cornered until some guy accidentally let him escape, that guy was accidentally shot by the cops as a result. Normally we get reports like this all the time but he was seen my a couple dozen people, putting Tesla back in reality."

"Son," said Matt, "This had gone on long enough, we need to end this Tesla fiasco."

"Due to Tesla's long history, we're going to need to call in the big guns. I'll see if I can persuade the mayor of that option, but I'm not sure how he will react. We'll talk about this more tonight, I gotta go Mark."

"Bye Dad."

When Officer Kissinger left, Emolga tapped Mark's head to get his attention, "Emolga?"

"No, I don't think he's going to throw you out of the house."

"I'll go talk to your dad for you at the station," said Matt, "You take care now, okay?"

"I will Grandpa, bye."

"Bye Matt." said Ash.

"Pika pika." Pikachu waved goodbye.

When Matt left, Mark slumped onto the couch and held Emolga in his arms, "You gave me quite a scare in the forest Emolga, please don't do that again."

Emolga chuckled, as if he expected that line, "Yeah," said Mark, "Remind me not to let you go Rambo again next time."

"What the plan Mark?" asked Ash.

"You think you can go to the Faraday City Library to do research on Tesla?"

"I can do that."

"Pikachu." agreed Pikachu.

"I'm gotta make sure its locked up tight," said Mark, "I'll install some locks and latches on my doors and windows so Tesla won't try to get into this house, I'm also going to call in a friend or two to help us with our situation. I'm also going to need a sign and some paint."

"Why a sign and paint?"

"You'll see Ash, you'll see."

"Okay, so where's the library?"

"We past it on the way here."

"Oh yeah, I remember now. It's not that far."

"Go there and dig up what you can, I'll do my part and make sure I get this place safe from any curious Pokémon. Just the thought on securing a house from a Pokémon, especially a small one, is just ridiculous. Well, hopefully he won't come around here anytime soon."

Mark reached into his pocket and pulled out 10 pokédollars , "Here Ash, you'll might need this for a cab."

"Thanks." said Ash.

"Don't mention it."

**. . .**

In the small town that borders the ocean in Unova, Cabot Richardson sits in front of his TV and flipped through the channels. Every channel he checked had nothing interesting on, and there weren't anything happening on the news. He let out a groan and shut off the TV, then sat the remote back on the coffee table.

"Axew," Cabot called out, "Where are you?"

Axew came around the corner within a few seconds, he let out a yawn as he stood in the middle of the living room, "Axew." he replied.

Though Cabot was born in Hoenn, he left home at the age of 10 to go on his Pokémon journey. Some years past when Cabot decided to settle down, just a year ago he managed to buy an apartment building and got a job at the nearby Pokémon gym. For some reason he felt fate felt a bit dull, like a knife trying to cut a sheet of paper but acted more like a saw than a blade. Living off of 15,000 pokédollars per year, and paying the rent on time, Cabot managed to stabilize his life.

He took a sip of tea as his Axew crawled onto the couch, he snuggled right beside him and hugged. Cabot scratched the back of the Tusk Pokémon's head, causing him to let out soft cooing. Somewhere within the Land of Dragons, Cabot found the Axew living in a small cave just 5 years ago. The Axew took a liking of Cabot, but Cabot didn't like him at first. So he left. But Axew followed him everywhere he went, and after what seemed to be the 35th encounter Cabot gave up and took Axew under his wing. The two had been friends ever since.

Cabot adjust his thin-rimmed glasses and turned the TV back on, then tune it back to CNN. Finally something interesting appeared, Cabot leaned forward to get a better look, "Tesla confirmed alive in Faraday City." he read the title on the bottom of the screen.

"Axew?" Axew muttered.

"The legendary Pikachu owned by the diseased Pokémon Master, Irvin Westinghouse, had been caught on film for the first time in more than 20 years. He was first thought to have past away after a few years of Irvin's death. Though rumors suggest he was still alive, he wasn't seen for many years until now."

Footage shot from someone's camera phone engulfed the screen, Cabot watched as the Pikachu in question ran out of a building. Seeing that he was surrounded, he looked around for an escape and found it, "The storm drain," Cabot chuckled, "Smart move, sp the legend of Tesla is real after all."

Cabot fumbled with the remote and changed the channel, "Ooh, this is interesting."

**. . .**

Officer Kissinger gripped the steering wheel of his squad car, trying to think on what to do next. Tesla had been a myth to Faraday City for 20 years, a myth he almost doubted. But now that myth was blown out of the water and become reality. Kissinger had known Irvin since he was a boy, and especially knew Tesla personally. Sometime during his childhood and adolescence, Kissinger wanted to play with Tesla. But every time he showed affection, the Mouse Pokémon simply warned him to back off by displaying some electric sparks. Now, 30 years later, Tesla attacked his son and his friends. He received the news at the police department, had Mark been injured himself he would drove straight to the hospital to meet him. At least he was okay, yet a Pokémon of his was dead. Maybe because of him?

Mark had never properly taken care of his Pokémon, instead of the required Pokémon food, he feeds him either regular food or junk food. Never had he seen Mark's Pokémon been seen in a battle, in fact he didn't recall Mark battling any other Pokémon trainer ever since he got Emolga from the Pokémon Lab. Now that he got his Pokémon injured and another killed, Kissinger started to consider releasing all of his Pokémon...

"Not a good idea," He told himself out loud, "But still... Oh why does he have to get the cute Pokémon?"

He pulled up in the parking lot of his designated police department district and parked his squad car, then head straight inside. He past several of his co-workers and some of their Pokémon along the way to his desk, they all glanced at him but paid no attention. They were too focused in their work. When he sat down at his desk, he started up his computer and got down to writing his recent report on-

"K!"

Kissinger turned and saw Trent at the edge of his office, "Kissinger," said his co-worker and old friend, "You have a moment?"

"What is it about Trent?" Kissinger asked.

"Word got around that your son was attacked by Tesla, and his Pokémon-"

"I don't want to talk about it and neither does my son, he's already in enough trouble as it is."

"Okay then, what about the recent-"

"Tesla sighting? I got the word when I was at my break. I guess I haven't wasted 20 years for nothing."

"I honestly thought he no longer exist, I've been a personal Westinghouse fan myself but I found Tesla okay. He's a bit of a loner you know."

"I knew that the hard way, I tried to hold him a few times when I was a kid. But he glared at me, even threatened to shock me. I never laid a finger on him ever since I knew him, I was upset that I never get to hold him... Am I'm still upset to this very day."

"No wonder you took this case so personally, you knew Tesla by heart."

"New him so well that what he done after Irvin's death isn't a surprise, he's a pro afterall."

Trent chuckled, "Anyway, what are you planning today?"

"Now that I have prove that Tesla's still alive, and maybe prove that the victims I interviewed were indeed attacked by Tesla, I'm planning to persuade the mayor to send out a small army to get Tesla."

Trent's jaw dropped, "What?"

"You heard me."

"Whoa, K, this may not be a-"

"My son nearly became a statistic Trent," exclaimed Kissinger, "We can't just ignore this anymore. The Meowth's out of the bag! More trainers and their Pokémon are going to get hurt for trying to hunt him down, we need to get into that forest and fish him out!"

"No other alternative?"

"You want to burn down the entire forest?"

"No, it's city property. If we're going to need to persuade the major, we gotta persuade our boss first."

"Lieutenant Kelly?"

"Yes."

"Okay then, let's go ask him."

Kissinger got up and the two officers head over to their boss' office. They found the door wide open and Lieutenant Kelly sleeping on his desk, as usual, "Sir?" Kissinger asked as he knocked on the door frame.

Lieutenant Kelly jolt before looking up, "I was just sleeping my eyes," lied Kelly as he yawned, "Wait, what are you here for?"

"We need to stop Tesla," said Kissinger, "We need to stop him once and for all."

"Wait what?"

"Tesla _still _exists, he's been caught on film for once in twenty years. My son confirmed it as well, he ventured out into Tesla's own forest and got attacked by him. His Emolga's injured and his Magnemite's killed."

"We've been going after Tesla for years."

"No, we weren't even putting much effort into it. Besides, he comes to us through all of the encounters in the city. We'll come to _him _for a change, what do you say?"

Kelly thought about it for a moment, "Going after an old Pikachu is one thing, but going into his forest to find him? You know that place is booby-trapped?"

"He attacked my son and killed one of his Pokémon, Kelly!"

"I've heard, was that how you got that idea?"

"My father."

Kelly interlocked his hands and rested his chin on them, using the desk for elbow support, "How big's the bounty now?"

"500,000 pokédollars."

"Hm, I think that bounty has increased enough. Tell you what, I'll schedule a meeting with the mayor and we'll see how that goes. In the meantime, you might wanna plan on how to catch this elusive Pokémon."

"Thank you sir."

"You feel better?" Trent ask Kissinger as they walked out of the office.

"Not until it's done," said Kissinger, "I best get back to work, I'll catch you later."

"Okay K, see you around."

**. . .**

Ash had no trouble finding the library, following Mark's instructions he found it without taking a wrong turn or retracing his steps. He walked inside and ask the librarian about some information on Tesla, she was a little hesitant since she saw Pikachu on his shoulder but complied. She guided Ash to a computer where he sat down and began his research.

First he dug into the newspaper archives and managed to find the earliest account of Tesla and his trainer, Irving Westinghouse. It was their first major league battle, within the old black & white photo on the front page newspaper Ash saw a young Irvin doing the peace symbol with Tesla perched on his shoulders. The color and resolution of the photo blurred most of Irvin's descriptions, but Ash can see he had dark hair and a pair of glasses. Tesla on the other hand, lit up in the photo thanks to his bright fur. The Pokémon's eye goggles made him look cute in this photo, but he didn't have a happy and cheerful face like his trainer. Instead he had a serious look with an attitude, like he's ready to become angry in a split second. However the smile made that seem unlikely.

Ash sat back and rest his head on his hands for a moment, "Even when he was our age, Tesla looked quite grumpy."

"Pikachu." agreed Pikachu.

He sat up and resumed his research, after looking through a few more newspaper archives it began to paint Tesla's background. Turns out Tesla had some run-ins with the law, he was caught by the police a few times for vandalism and arson. Irvin managed to pay the bail to them both and got him out of jail. As he got older, he stopped committing crimes on his own accord.

Ash found a few home videos of Irvin and Tesla, he and Pikachu put on a set of headphones and started to view the video. In the video, there were three bottles sitting on a platform of cinder-blocks. The video suddenly turned and showed Tesla, armed with a semi-automatic rifle. He lay on his belly, lining up the sights of the rifle and making minor adjustments. Ash felt Pikachu shift uneasily on his shoulder, but kept his focus on the video.

The angle turned back towards the bottles, this time with Tesla in the picture. After a few more seconds, Tesla fired three rapid burst shots and took out all three bottles in less than half a second, "Nice Tesla," said a country-accented voice, maybe it was Irvin, "Now take out those 5 Pidgeys. I'll scare them airborne for, once they're in the air you knock the daisies out of them, okay?."

The Pidgeys sat in the trees in the background, minding their own business. Tesla reloaded his rifle and cocked it. Now ready, Tesla gave the go ahead to begin. Irvin fired a few shots into where the Pidgeys are at, they jumped into the sky and took off into the air. Once all 5 Pidgeys were completely airborne, they dropped like flies when 5 rapid-fire burst sounded, "Nice shot, Tesla!"

Tesla let out a small, yet pleased smile before reloading the gun.

Seeing enough, Ash closed the video, "So he had killed Pokémon before, I'm beginning to feel uneasy about all this."

"Pikachu." Pikachu shared his feelings as well.

Ash began searching Irvin's own records. He discovered Irvin was born and raised in Faraday City, he grew up in a middle class family. His father had died when he was 2, and his mother had been taking care of him throughout his childhood. He met Tesla when he was only 14, it wasn't clear how the two bonded. Weeks later, they met Matt Kissinger. Ash was surprised to find out that it was Matt who gave Tesla his name, not to mention gave him his signature eye goggles. Turns out Tesla was near-sided, he might not had much of a life if his eyesight wasn't corrected.

Several months later, Irvin had a accident. His right hand had been violently amputated, according to him it was from working on his car. Just a few days later, Irvin Westinghouse left home to start his journey. Ash went back the photos he saw and checked Irvin's right hand, every available photo showed Irvin had a humanoid-robotic hand. He got a better view from older photos, which showed the detailed mechanics of Irvin's cybernetic arm.

_Interesting_. Ash thought.

Just twenty years ago, Irvin died. He slumped over the wheel passed out, Matt managed to prevent a bad crash and quickly got him to the hospital. Tesla was taken straight home once Irvin was in the hospital, the newspaper report stated he didn't struggle. The cause of death was revealed to be a "silent" heart attack. Normally a regular heart attack would show early symptoms, the classic symptoms are gastric problems and pain in the left shoulder. Irvin got no warning, since the pain receptors in his heart were already dead. And so died instantly.

"Died at the age of 86," Ash said as he skimmed through the news article again, "Since he got Tesla at an early age, the Pikachu must be really old. But... _how _old?"

"Pikachu?" Pikachu showed his curiosity, seemingly wanting to know more as much as Ash.

He searched for any records of Tesla's past, but found none. All there was that Tesla had showed up out of the blue at the Faraday City Pokémon Laboratory, just a week before he met Irvin. Ash didn't plan on visiting the lab, the people who took Tesla in were all gone.

**. . .**

"So you gotta be at my house around noon tomorrow," said Mark, "Yes Carley, around that time... No, it's not a date... I'm going to have some other friends over... It's important... Okay, talk to you later. Bye."

Mark hanged up and dialed another number, "Henry, this is Mark... I'm doing fine pal. Look, remember that favor you owe me... I'm calling it in, I need to borrow your Raichu... No, we're going Pokémon hunting. You know Tesla, we're going after him... Okay you can come, but make sure you bring Raichu. Be at my house around noon tomorrow... Bye."

Emolga nibbled on some popcorn as Mark pocketed his phone, "Emolga, I need you to come with me. I don't feel comfortable leaving you alone here after what happened."

"Emolga," agreed Emolga, then jumped to his feet, "Emo Emolga!"

Emolga hopped onto Mark's shoulders and they left the house. Mark got into his small car: a used pickup truck whose body was badly rusting, and went to the nearby hardware store. He bought a small yellow, red, and black paint can; some brushes; a can of glue; and some planks of cedar wood. With all the supplies in hand, he stashed it all in the back of the pickup truck and drove home.

Once he got back, he got out his his dad's miter saw began to cut the boards in the correct length. With all the boards cut in the correct length, he carefully lined up 3 planks of wood in parallel to make a square, then glued them into one huge plank of wood. He repeated the process to the other boards and got 6 squares each. Next he got out some small half a centimeter long screws and a cordless drill, then installed a couple of wooden braces on the back of each square. Finally he glued and screwed on the post on each back of the squares, completing the signs. After a little bit of sanding, he got to work and painted them. First he painted: WARNING: PIKACHU TERRITORY in big red letters on one sign, next he painted an accurate picture of a Pikachu on another sign and wrote DANGER in big red letters above that. He made the picture of the Pikachu look like he's going to pounce, and also painted angry eyes and a frown. The final sign was a simple lightning bolt. He repeated making the signs on the last three blank ones before laying them out to dry.

Mark went back into the house and head back into his bedroom, he dug around his closet and pulled out a small case. He opened it up and revealed a 6mm bolt-action varmint rifle. He had bought his rifle online about a few years ago because he wanted one, his dad helped him figuring it out how it works and he figured out the rest. He hadn't shot any living thing with it, just bottles and paper targets. It was now time to use it for a more "useful" purpose.

Mark pulled it out, assembled it, then oiled the inside of the barrel. After checking everything is working, Mark opened a drawer and pulled out a silencer. If he ever fired this in the woods, he didn't want the sound to startle anybody into calling the cops. Even better, Tesla might not know where the bullets are coming from if he missed. The thought of shooting at a Pokémon was bitter and sickening as it feels, but he's not going out there unprotected. He picked up the silencer and screwed it onto the barrel of the rifle, once it was screwed in on the way Mark installed a precision scope. He checked the sights and made sure it was working, sure enough it seemed to be working. Finally, Mark clipped on the gun sling and grabbed some 6mm ammo clips and loaded it into the gun, then pocketed the rest.

He strapped the gun on his back with its sling and head back downstairs to check on the signs, they were quite dry and ready now. Mark picked up the signs and stashed it into the back of his pickup truck. Now just one more thing to do for today, _Where is Emolga? _Mark thought when he noticed he wasn't following him.

Mark went back into the living room and found him sleeping on the couch, his lips were covered in chocolate stains, "Emolga!" called out Mark.

Emolga stirred and sat up, "Emolga?" he called.

"Come on," said Mark, "We just have to do one more thing."

Emolga groaned as he hopped onto his trainer's shoulder, Mark left the house and hopped back into his truck. He drove down the road and made a detour onto the dirt road, approaching Tesla's forest. Emolga figured it all out and immediately started shivering in fear, "Emolga," said Mark, "I need you to keep an eye out for Tesla while I put these signs up, okay?"

His Pokémon reluctantly nodded, "Baby." Mark grumbled as he got out of the truck.

Emolga hopped onto the roof as Mark grabbed 3 of the signs, then walked out to the entrance of the forest. With a rubber mallet, he hammered the signs into the soil just next to the road, near the signs that the city had placed. The sign with the Pikachu on it goes on the right awhile the other two go on the left. He constantly looked over his shoulder and into the forest as he installed the sign, remembering all to well that Tesla doesn't like trespassers. It took him 3 minutes to install the signs, once finished he rushed back to his truck where Emolga quickly followed him back inside, "Now the other entrance," said Mark, "Then we go home."

"Emolgaaa." Emolga whined.

"Shut it, Emolga."

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	7. Chapter VII

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter VII_

A manhole popped open in the middle street, the 45 kilogram slab of metal slid open with the assistance of a yellow hand to reveal the darkness below. Tesla stuck his head out and checked for traffic, nothing. The old Pikachu crawled out of the manhole and slid the cover back on its slot, he ran off the road and straight towards the forest below.

He blundered his way through the forest and reached his cherished safe zone. Tesla climbed up a tree and dropped to the other side of the electric fence with ease, after getting out of sight from it he slumped on his back and breathed a sigh of relief, _I'm getting too old for this. _Tesla thought.

Tesla stared up at the bright blue space above him for a moment before closing his eyes. There he rest his aching muscles and joints, running through the sewer was never a part of anybody's plan. Oh well, the world's still turning, and the moon with it.

He remembered it now, it was after the match where he rode on Irvin's shoulders. His assistant, Matt Kissinger, followed beside him, "Another successful match," said Matt, "You planning on retiring anytime soon?"

"Yeah," said Irvin, "I'm going to see what benefits I can get from the federal government and how big my pension will be."

"What about your Pikachu?"

Irvin stopped Matt, "His name is Tesla, Matt."

"Oh, of course," Irvin and Matt continued walking, "What do you want to do with him?"

"I don't know, I've reached the top of the latter of my Pokémon training career and I have no retirement plan. I had Tesla for more than 70 years now and-" Irvin covered his mouth with his elbow and started coughing into it, after a few seconds he took a deep breath before continuing, "I haven't thought of what I'm going to with him afterwords."

"He's getting old as well Irvin, are you Tesla?"

Tesla made a grumpy face and nodded, during that time his joint pain was starting to develop, "You said that Tesla can speak human words, Irvin?" asked Matt.

"He can," said Irvin, "He just doesn't like talking to anybody, nor other Pokémon. I never understand why he isn't open-minded with other people."

Irvin and Matt stepped out of the Pokémon Arena and approached their car, a red 4 seat convertible. It had comfortable patting, which made it easy to sleep in when sitting. Tesla jumped in and buckled himself into the backseat, Irvin got behind the wheel as Matt sat in the passenger seat, "What about your other Pokémon?" he asked as Irvin started the car.

"I'll let them decide for themselves," said Irvin, "If they want to stay with me in my retirement or they want to be exchanged to a new owner, that is their decision," Irvin looked at Tesla through the rear-view mirror, "Had you made your choice already buddy?"

Tesla let out a smile and nodded, "See Matt," said Irvin, "Tesla decided."

Irvin drove out of the parking lot and down the main road of Faraday City, Tesla had seen the place so many times that he got tired of it. He closed his eyes and napped as he listened in on Irvin and Matt's conversation, "Irvin," asked Matt, "Do you think Tesla should be with other people?"

"Why?" he asked.

"Every human and some Pokémon he ever met gets a face and a warning gesture to back off. I know that Tesla is a loner, but he needs somebody else to support him like you do."

"If anyone wants to take care of him, they have to fight for it. To prove that they love Tesla, they have to combat a series of challenges. They had to break through that shell Tesla has around himself and get into his heart, it won't be easy Matt and I'm confident it can be done."

"You sure?"

"If he can love me, he can love anyone else."

There was a short pause before the conversation continued, "What does Tesla do on his free time?" Matt asked.

"He self-teaches himself at using firearms and play around with electricity," said Irvin, "He can take out any target up to 3 kilometers, either with a gun or an electric attack."

"You taught him how to use firearms?" asked Matt.

"Taught him how to make traps and explosives too, even showed him how to fix up cars and trucks. You should have seen him Matt, he really likes that kind of stuff. He's a smart little thing, he has no regrets."

"Does he know the danger?"

"He had exposed himself to powerful magnetic fields and electricity so many times that he learned how to cope with them, that's what you call an electric-type Pokémon there."

Tesla snickered, he opened his eyes and saw Irvin looked at him once again through the rear-view mirror at him, "So that got you laughing?"

Tesla smiled, but said nothing, "Ah," Irvin noted, "Still using the silent treatment are we?"

He returned his focus onto the road, "Matt, did I tell you that time on how Tesla hammered down beer?"

"He did what?" Matt asked

"Oh it was so hilarious, it was this party you see-"

Without warning Irvin yelped and slumped forward, "Irvin," cried Matt as he grabbed the wheel, "Damn!"

Tesla sat helpless as he watched the car careened off the road and head straight for a corner of an apartment block, then slammed into it head on. He jumped and opened his eyes, once again staring at the beautiful blue sky. Tesla relaxed, it was all in his head, _Another flashback_, Tesla thought, _These nightmares are getting ridiculous._

He shut his eyes once again and took a deep breath, hoping for more pleasant dreams. That's not what happened.

**. . . **

When Ash and Pikachu returned back to Mark's house around sundown, he knocked on the door and Mark quickly answered, "So what did you found?" he asked.

"Tesla is very skilled," said Ash, "More skilled than we previously thought, he has a criminal record for vandalism and arson. He also killed Pokémon before."

"That's not surprising, but at least its a good start."

"Sure enough, he didn't loose a single match. There were some claims that he cheated in some of the matches, I'm not too sure though."

Ash sat down on the couch next to Emolga, who this time was wide awake. His head bandages were replaced with a single large white patch that cover the very top of his head, just between his ears. Mark picked Emolga up and sat next to Ash, the Pokémon laughed as he and Mark rubbed each other noses together, "You're such a giggly one," said Mark, "Yes, you are! Yes, you are!"

Mark cradled Emolga and tickled his belly, the Pokémon couldn't help but laugh out loud, "Emolga! Emolga! Emolga!"

"Your head still hurts?"

Emolga frowned and nodded.

"Well," said Mark, "Let me kiss it to make it feel better."

Mark kissed Emolga's forehead and tickled his side, the flying-squirrel laughed in the most sweetest way imaginable. Mark abruptly stopped tickling and turned his attention back to Ash, "Oh Ash, I managed to get some help for our search tomorrow."

"Who did you get?"

"My girlfriend, and a friend that owes me a few favors. He agreed to let us _borrow_ his Raichu?"

That got Pikachu curious, "Pika Pika?"

"You know how difficult it is to beat a Raichu, right Pikachu?"

"Pika." nodded Pikachu feverishly.

"Imagine battling a Raichu who has a small army at his back, that's what Tesla might experience when we encounter him next time," Mark turned his attention back to Emolga, "Let's take a look at your scalp, Emolga."

Emolga sat on Mark's lap and got comfortable, his trainer peeled off the bandage a little bit, "Well Emolga," said Mark reluctantly, "They fixed your head the best they could but-"

"Emolga!" Emolga screamed in panic.

"But it's healing well." Mark finished.

Emolga groaned as he cuddled into Mark's arm, "We'll change the bandage before we go to bed, okay?"

"Emo." muttered Emolga.

The door opened up and Officer Kissinger stepped through, he seemed to have more energy this time, "Evening Dad." said Mark.

"Evening son," said Kissinger as he sat down his briefcase, "So, what had you been doing all day?"

"Pulling some strings," said Mark, "What have you been doing?"

"I managed to schedule an appointment with the mayor tomorrow, my boss agreed with me about dealing with Tesla. So, what kind of strings did you pull son?"

"I beefed up the security of the house, finally done what you ask years before."

"Yes, I can see a new set of latches on the front door."

"The windows have some dowels and miniature alarms, I feel pretty safer already now that's up."

"Okay then... Mark, what are the paint cans for?"

Ash saw three well used paint cans, sitting on a couple of sheets of newspapers, "They're for another project," said Mark, "I made some warning signs for Tesla, Emolga here kept a lookout for him as I boldly installed them at both ends of the road of his forest."

"Smart thinking, though you took a risk on going back there after what happened."

"It was a calculated risk, I planned on getting it done in 6 minutes. I had 2 minutes to spare once the signs are installed."

Kissinger walked over and rubbed Emolga's head, but not where the injury was. The flying squirrel Pokémon cooed as he relaxed his tense muscles, "How's he doing?"

"He's doing fine, a bit sensitive but doing alright," Kissinger shift his hand on Mark's shoulder as he sighed, "I nearly lost him dad, what was I thinking? I never had a friend like Emolga, when he cried at the hospital..." Mark pressed Emogla closed to him, "It was like the day I met him again."

"Have you learned your lesson?"

Mark looked up at his dad, "Tesla made sure I did. The only Pokémon who wasn't seriously hurt was Pikachu. To come to think of it, Tesla took quite an interest of him."

Pikachu nodded, "Pikachu."

"He thought Pikachu can act like a white flag," said Ash, "He was _almost_ right."

"When I was 10, I wanted to be Tesla's friend. He nearly shocked me as a result," Kissinger pointed at the HDTV, "Took out the TV as a result."

"He used to be here once?"

"Once, Tesla's temper was easy to flare. Thankfully I wasn't around when Tesla was much younger, he was more aggressive than. He and Irvin were visiting about a few years before that day, I was offering Irvin a drink when my hand came a little too close to Tesla. He unleashed a Thunderbolt, and took out the previous TV on the wall. As I was busy putting out the electrical fire, Irvin just sat there on the couch and laughed hard. I think that was the only time I ever saw Tesla smile."

Kissinger backed away and headed up the stairs, "Night."

"Goodnight."

When the group heard Kissinger shut his bedroom door, Emolga started to cry again, "Don't start Emolga," said Mark, "Don't cry, please!"

Ash watched as Mark cuddled Emolga and whispered soft words into his ear, within minutes he soothed his first Pokémon to sleep.

"I didn't realize how you almost lost Emolga until I saw Tesla's shooting video," said Ash, "I'm sorry I didn't grasp it when we're at the hospital."

"Well Ash, you know how great it is to snuggle with a Pokémon like Emolga in bed?"

Ash looked at Pikachu, "I sure do."

Pikachu let out a pleasing smile.

"Especially if they're furry and their skin and joints are quite flexible," said Mark, "It's gotta be the greatest feeling to have at night."

"I wonder how does Tesla sleep at night."

"It must be hard on him, it gets cold at night out in Faraday Island. I wonder how he manage."

**. . .**

The campfire burned bright and hot in the blackness of the night, Tesla held his hands up and let the heat warm his aging frame. The sun had finally set, but still the sky seemed bright. The temperature already dropped to 8 degrees Celsius, Tesla held his cold tail near the fire to warm it up as well. When finished he rest on his bed, a simple pile of dried leaves and twigs. Hopefully it doesn't rain tonight, since he doesn't have a roof to shelter him. The last thing Tesla needs is a common cold, which could be hazardous to a Pokémon around his age.

After making sure the fire would burn for most of the night, Tesla laid on the bed and closed his eyes, then drift off to dreamland.

The thought of being back home was pleasant, though it felt empty without Irvin around. He remembered sitting in the living room, just waiting for the news from the hospital if Irvin's alright. The old man, his trainer, his oldest friend, his father-figure, the very person that held up the structure of his life. The very human being who sheltered and fed him, but only for his own purposes. No matter, Irvin showed he loved him. He _proofed _he loved him by putting his life in risk. He made the world go around for Tesla. The Pikachu didn't care then, but now he felt bad about Irvin's commitment for him.

Now the world was slowing down, no question about it. After long hours of waiting, the moment of truth arrived. The front door unlocked and opened, Tesla hoped Irvin would walk in and give him a big hug like always. He was disappointed to discover it was Matt. There was something in his hand, it looked like a letter or something. Hoping for an answer, Tesla approached and stood on his hindlegs. Matt showed a depressing look on his face and sighed, "I'm sorry Tesla."

_No... _

Tesla ran upstairs and into the bedroom, the very bed he and his trainer slept on for years. Matt didn't come up to comfort him, he just left him alone in the room. For hours, Tesla cried. He knew Irvin was going to pass, he didn't expect him to die right in front of him. So when the funeral came, Tesla attended but didn't look at his trainer's body in the open casket. He just couldn't, it was too hard for him. When Irvin Westinghouse was finally buried in the presence of what seemed like a million adoring fans, friends, and former rivals, Matt took Tesla home. Once there, he overheard a conversation of Matt talking to someone on the phone. He picked up a separate phone and eavesdropped, discovering that he may be given away to another trainer.

At that moment, Tesla realized the best of Irvin's death. He was now free, but at a cost. The bond between him and Irvin was officially broken, and his heart felt sore from the break. He couldn't stand to be with another trainer, Tesla didn't wanna repeat of what happened to him and his biological family... So that night, Tesla sneaked out of his trainer's house and never looked back. Starting a game that seemed like the biggest mistake of his entire life.

He felt the tears coming, yet this wasn't a time to shed them. Tesla sat up and stared at the fire. It reminded him of Irvin, since the trainer taught him how to start fires, _Just how you showed me Irvin._ Tesla thought.

Tesla added some more firewood into the fire and laid back down. His life wasn't over yet, he had gotten this far after Irvin's death and now he was presented with an opportunity. That Pikachu, that much younger rodent of his own kind set foot on this island. He's close friends with that Ash character, he saw how strong their bond really was. Maybe this Pikachu might help him out of his situation, ending this nightmare. It'll take a few hundred more variables for things to fall into the right place, but its worth the gamble. Tesla had nothing to lose, but this Pikachu had only one thing to loose. He'll surely understand his pain, but how can this Pikachu feel his pain? How can this Pikachu pull him out of his situation?

_How? _

Tesla thought about it underneath the starry night for a few minutes and figured out a plan, but it will involve leaving his comfort zone for good. This forest had served it's purpose. His life had boiled down to the most vital moment ever, it could mean either life or death. Tesla will need to play his cards right, though he didn't know where to start, not to mention he doesn't have much time to act. Where should he begin?

He does have a small cage, completely made of metal to help trap any electric attacks going in or out. He had it stuffed with the many Poké balls he captured from those idiot trainers. The Pokémon trapped in them, he couldn't tell if they're still alive or dead after all this time, nor does he wanna find out, _If I'm going to need to build a safehouse outside my safe zone, _he thought, _I best do it tonight._

Tesla grabbed the bucket of water and put out his fire, he sat there until his night vision improved enough for where he could see well in the dark. He had all night to get this project completed, it may be the most important project ever There's only one way to find out, he had to attempt and complete it. He had enough of living like a feral savage, Tesla want a new life and feel happy again.

_Happy again,_ The old Pikachu thought, _I miss that emotion..._

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	8. Chapter VIII

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter VIII_

It was a relaxing sleep last night, when Ash woke up he found his arms wrapped around Pikachu. He remembered what Mark said the other night of sleeping with Pokémon, seems that he's right after all. Ash pulled Pikachu closer to him and shut his eyes, hoping to catch a few more Zs. He quickly became alert when he started feeling light footsteps on top of the bed, Ash ignored it until he heard something sniffed his ear and licked his cheek. Ash looked up and saw it was Emolga, happy to see him.

"Emolga!" greeted Emolga, his voice almost painfully as loud as Mark's alarm clock. At least the alarm's not activated this time.

"Hey Emolga," said Ash, "How you're doing this morning?"

"Emolga."

Pikachu stirred and opened his eyes a crack, "Pika?"

"Pikachu," chuckled Ash, "Save me from his cuteness."

Emolga crawled up and gave Pikachu a hug, "Emolga!"

"Pikachu?" Pikachu asked, having no clue what's going on.

"Emo."

Emolga tried to crawl under the covers, but Ash picked him up, "Wow, Mark's right about you being real soft and cuddly. I forgotten how soft flying-squirrels felt."

Deciding to play with him a little bit, Ash managed to grab onto Emolga's side and lift up some of his skin, "Look at this, Pikachu."

Emolga laughed as Pikachu investigated, he reached out with both hand and grabbed onto Emolga's belly."Emolga! Emolga!" he laughed even harder in rapid fire fashion.

Ash looked up and saw how Emolga got into the bedroom in the first place, the door was wide open. Mark came walking by and saw the scene, he laughed, "A lot better than having that alarm squawk at you huh?"

"Yes," said Ash, "A lot better."

Ash released his grip on Emolga and the Pokémon retreated back to his trainer, he jumped up into the air and land himself on Mark's shoulders in perfect fashion, "Come downstairs when you're ready Ash." said Mark.

"I will."

When Mark went downstairs, Ash pulled the covers off and got out of bed, "You head downstairs Pikachu, I'll be down in a moment."

"Pikachu."

As Pikachu followed Mark, Ash went over to the upstairs bathroom. The bathroom had a neat decoration style to it, the light blue walls and small rugs for the toilet and sink made it all feel appropriate. On the sink counter, there were several boxes of toothpaste and some packages of toothbrushes. A single cup contained only two toothbrushes, one red, the other yellow. Does Emolga have his own toothbrushes or...

A smell game to Ash nose, he turned around and saw a tall white laundry basket half full of clothing. They gave off a sharp smell, it was so strong that Ash could almost see it. Ash turned of the fan to eliminate most of the smell, then grabbed a toothbrush package and tore it open. He added some toothpaste to it and started brushing as he took off his clothes and stepped into the shower, when he turned the water on he got a blast of nice hot water. That was unexpected, normally the water is cold. Ash made a mental note to ask Mark about it later.

The shampoo sitting on the shower's shelf looked like a cheap brand, despite it being a 2-in-1 shampoo. Ash saw no soap bar lying around, he simply groaned and used some of the shampoo for his hair, then as body wash. 15 minutes later, he shut off the water and dried himself off before returning to the bedroom to get change. He can always get his used clothes later.

After slipping on some _clean_ underwear, blue jeans, and a black t-shirt, Ash put on his hat and got his shoes on. Now ready, Ash head downstairs and found everyone in the living room. Emolga sat in his usual spot, eating a microwave TV dinner. Mark just ate a bowl of cereal as Pikachu ate a banana and drank out a juice carton, _Just use regular food. _Mark's words echoed in Ash's head. He wondered why he didn't oppose this.

"I walked into the bathroom and got a whiff of some used laundry," said Ash, "Is that normal?"

"I didn't notice," said Mark, "Oh wait, what day is it?"

"Saturday."

"Yup, it's laundry day. I'll take care of that soon."

Ash took a seat on the couch and stared at the cooler, it hadn't moved ever since Day 1, "Did you tell your dad on what you're planning?" Ash asked.

"No," said Mark, "He doesn't need to know that. We have our business, he has his own business. It's not time for our businesses to become one... Yet."

"If he's going to get the police to handle it, why are we still trying to negotiate with Tesla?"

"The police will shoot Tesla on sight, they're going to try to kill him."

Ash's eyes went big, "I didn't know that."

"The plan is to beat the police at it before they can get underway. I've already called in the big guns."

Mark reached behind the couch and pulled out a suppressed/ scoped varmint rifle, Pikachu dropped his juice carton at the sight of the rifle. He know what it represented, "You're going to shoot him?" Ash asked.

"I hope not," said Mark, "It's just to show him we need business if he's going to attack us."

"You're not going to kill him are you?"

"To incapacitate, not to kill."

"Mark!"

"Ash, we gotta have some form of lethal force if everything fails. I don't wanna kill Tesla, in fact my father and his father won't forgive me for that. All I need is one shot, and that should pacify him enough that we can manage him."

Mark noticed Pikachu was scooting away from the sight of the rifle, "Might as well put this away."

He laid the rifle on the seat of the couch, just behind him. That eased Pikachu enough to relax a bit, the mouse Pokémon retrieved his juice carton and sucked it dry, "Had you been shot at before Ash?" Mark asked.

Ash had lost count on the many times he had a gun pointed at his face, "Almost."

"Just for the record, Tesla knows how to use firearms. He's known for shooting other Pokémon but he_ never_ shot another human being... yet."

The doorbell rang and Mark got up to answer, "Hey guys," said Mark, "You're here early."

Ash turned and saw two of Mark's friends, there was a girl who wore a camouflaged vest, gray tank top, a pair of blue jeans, and sturdy shoes. She had brown hair with long pig tails, tied down with a brown bandanna. The other friend was a boy, wearing a red t-shirt, some blue jeans, and white tennis shoes. He had short thin hair, neatly trimmed. His frame was somewhat large, a mix of muscle and fat. He stood slightly taller than him and Mark, but seemed to be an okay guy. By his side was a Raichu, Ash forgotten how big Raichus were and was a bit surprised to see one. Mark let them in and shut the door, "Ash, this is Carley and Henry," said Mark, "Carley and Henry, this is Ash."

"Hey Ash." said Carley.

"What's up?" said Henry.

"Here for the Tesla search?" Ash asked.

"Yup," said Henry, "I brought in my Raichu for the challenge."

"Raichu." the Raichu smiled and waved at him.

Pikachu got down from the couch and approach Raichu cautiously. Raichu seemed curious to see his preceding form before him, just when Pikachu was in arm's reach Raichu gently grabbed Pikachu's head and appeared to be examining his red cheeks. Pikachu didn't resist, he knew how strong his evolved form really was, "Where did you get a Raichu?" Ash asked Henry.

"Somewhere at the main land," said Henry, "It used to be a Pikachu, but I evolved it with a Thunderstone. We've lived in Faraday City for 5 years now. I never thought he'll be used to catch Tesla though."

"He's going to be our big guns in catching Tesla," said Mark, he noticed how Raichu was examining Pikachu, "Looks like Raichu is getting a quick reference on what to look for, you sure you're okay of working with him, Pikachu?"

"Pikachu?" Pikachu said with uncertainty.

"He met some Raichus before," said Ash, "And he battled a few of them, beaten even fewer."

"Remember what I said last night about using Raichu on Tesla," said Mark, "We got a small army here now, and this house will be our base of operations. Don't be surprised if we fail the first time guys, cause it's to be expected."

_Well, _Ash thought, _There goes my confidence_.

"How are we going to catch Tesla?" Carley asked.

"We're going to wear him down to the point where he'll give up."

"How?"

"Hit and run tactics, we'll even continue in the night if we have to."

"What if our Pokémon fail and Tesla goes after us directly?" Henry asked.

Mark grabbed the varmint rifle and showed it, "Ohhh," said Henry, nodding his head, "You have any more guns?"

"Only one," said Mark, "But I plan on getting more."

"So when do we start?" asked Carley.

"Now."

**. . .**

Kissinger stood in front of the restroom mirror of City Hall, making sure his one-thousand pokédollar suit was as neat as possible. He hadn't worn anything formal besides his police uniform for years, getting readjusted to the feeling wasn't as quick as he expected it. Taking a deep breath, he breathed out the stress and anxiety building up in him since he left home. Believing he was ready, Officer Kissinger stepped out of the bathroom and joined Lieutenant Kelly in the main lobby.

"Let's not keep him waiting, Kissinger." he simply said.

_Reminds me of my interview for getting this job_. He said as he walked with his boss to the Mayor's office.

Mayor Dixon sat behind his giant mahogany desk in his large office. The smell of cedar calmed Kissinger a bit, but not entirely. He had never been in the Mayor's office before, he can't help but see how well decorated everything was. On the back wall was bookshelves that stood from floor to ceiling, filled with encyclopedias, pictures, and trophy rewards. Both walls on the sides of the room had been painted brown, with black parallel lines that help it mimic placed wood, or that was the idea. In the front of the room, the same design of bookshelves sat on both sides of the door. They were filled with regular books, or whatever books the Mayor likes to read. In front of the large desk was a couch that spanned parallel with it, _How convinent. _Kissinger thought as he sat down.

The Mayor swiveled around his chair and faced the two police officers, Kissinger found himself staring at his bald head for a moment before he realized it. Mayor Dixon was in his mid-fifties, he was overweight but stood quite tall. He had a passive expression on his face, Kissinger assumed it might go well.

"Mayor Dixon," said Kissinger, "Pleasure to meet you."

"I know your father quite well." said Mayor Dixon as the two shook hands.

Kissinger was surprised, "You do?"

"From my previous career, a career that might be related to what you're here for."

_Oh, this is bad_. Kissinger thought, this isn't what he was expecting.

"He never said anything about you." said Kissinger.

"Maybe," said Dixon, "So, what are you're here for... Emmett Kissinger?"

"Sir, I request that we should mobilized the police force to make an offensive on Tesla."

The mayor frowned, "Tesla?"

Kissinger gulped, "Yes, sir. Tesla, the Pikachu who we've been after for the past 20 years."

"One thing I learned about Tesla was that, he takes battles very seriously. He had defeated 10 of my Pokémon in such the major leagues 40 years back."

"You were one of Westinghouse's opponents?" Lieutenant Kelly asked.

"Yes, I was. I tried out every Pokémon I had on Tesla and he beaten them all, half of them with a single blow."

"Sir, Tesla attacked my son. Killed one of his Pokémon and sent two more to the hospital. He's more stronger now."

"Your family had been well associated with Mr. Westinghouse," said Mayor Dixon, "If you expect to lead such an attack on Tesla, think again. I looked into your dossier and discovered that your tactics on taking down criminals are remarkably similar to Tesla's tactics when worked in reverse."

"I didn't come here to ask you to lead a raid," said Kissinger in a passive tone, "I come here to ask _for_ one. With all do respect sir, Tesla has a heavy record that cannot be ignored."

"Any crime he committed is in act of self-defense," said Mayor Dixon, "Or trying to scrape by daily life. You know where he lives?"

"A forest outside the suburbs, somewhere close to my residence. You know, the forest that's city property, containing the old trade route?"

"Oh _that _place. The last that I recalled its booby-trapped out the ass, it would be risky just to send in anyone in there."

"Firebomb the forest?"

"No, too much collateral damage, and its too close to people."

"How about a midnight raid?"

The mayor thought about it for a moment, "That could work. Okay, I'll see what I can do."

"Thank you, sir."

Mayor Dixon sat back and held up a finger, "Now let me tell you this. If this police raid managed to successfully capture Tesla on the first attempt, you get $500,000 pokédollars reward."

Kissinger raised an eyebrow, "What?"

"If they get Tesla," said Dixon, "You get the reward. That simple. If it fails, the bounty will increase to a _million _pokédollars and you get nothing."

"You can increase the bounty?"

"I can increase it at will, in fact this will be the largest police raid in the history of Faraday City and the largest in the world for going after a Pokémon. Congratulations, you just set the course for a historical moment no matter how it will turn out in the end."

"So what happens if the police raid fails?"

Mayor Dixon leaned towards Kissinger, "I call in the big guns."

"The army?" Kissinger asked.

"Yes. And if that fails on the first attempt, then the bounty goes to _ten-million _pokédollars and we bolster everything we got before throwing it all at him in one package."

Kissinger was speechless, he didn't know what to say, "You sure that the army will agree to such an operation?" Kelly asked.

"They had offered their assistance 15 years ago," said Mayor Dixon, "Not to mention they owe us a few favors that date back to historical times. They'll comply, at least officially."

"Tesla might have hostages," said Kelly, "He had taken several Pokémon from the trainers that come after him, what if he uses them as shields?"

"We'll think of something, we won't be running out of options anytime soon."

Kelly stood up, "Thank you for your time, Mayor."

"I have all the time in the world, come back if you want to try something new on Tesla."

Kelly and Kissinger walked out of the office and back into the lobby, "Well that went well," said Lieutenant Kelly, "You don't seem to satisfied K."

"I think I'm beginning to see why Tesla does this."

"Does what?"

Kissinger looked at Kelly, "For as long as I've known Tesla, he's quite a loner. I recall seeing him stressed and at times angry, Irvin didn't understand why. I think the Pokémon battles and the major leagues had taken his toll on him Kelly, ever since Irvin died many trainers from far and wide wanted to get a hold of him. They're still wanting to get a hold of him, they're more of a threat to him than us."

"You're saying that they caused this and not Tesla?"

"I'm saying it drove Tesla into it, sir."

"It makes sense, but I'm not sure he'll be let off the hook once it's all over. The only way I see Tesla peacefully go scott-free is either he pay the bounty or give the police department a pardon letter. The only way he can get a pardon letter is from the governor of Faraday Island."

"You sure its a good idea in getting him involved?"

"I don't know, he said he doesn't wanna deal with the Tesla problem. He simply thinks that Tesla's just a famous outlaw."

"He might say something when federal soldiers come marching in Kelly."

"The bounty on Tesla's head is only in Faraday City. If Tesla were to leave the city limits, the FCPD can't touch him on official business."

"Could he figure that out."

Kelly stopped Kissinger and looked at him, "He doesn't wanna cause trouble elsewhere, K."

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	9. Chapter IX

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter IX_

The small band of people and Pokémon approached Tesla's forest, Ash pondered if this was really a good idea. Mark's determined to get a hold of Tesla, but maybe a bit too cocky. Pikachu was already having his second thoughts, why shouldn't he be? Tesla toyed with him a bit after defeating him, Ash wasn't so sure why. What did Tesla see in Pikachu that spared him from the heavy punishment he caused to the other Pokémon? Something just doesn't feel right.

When they approach the forest, Ash saw that warning signs had been recently put up, after what he experienced on his first visit, the signs felt appropriate, "Like my work?" Mark asked.

"You made those?" Ash asked.

"Yeah."

"Nice, I wonder if Tesla does as well."

Mark pulled Emolga off his shoulders and looked at him in the eyes, "You stay close to me this time, alright Emolga?"

"Emolga." smiled Emolga.

"Oh your Emolga is so cute." said Carley.

Mark chuckled, "Yes, he is. He's also the most laziest Pokémon I've ever met."

"May I hold him?"

"Sure, here."

Mark handed Emolga to Carley, just as she put Emolga on her shoulders the flying-squirrel Pokémon pressed his nose into her cheek, causing her to giggle, "I think he likes you." said Mark.

Carley laughed, "He does!"

"Emolga!" Emolga cheered as he hopped on her head and wrap his tail around her eyes.

"Stop Emolga!" insisted Carley.

"Give him back when Tesla shows up," said Mark, "Okay."

"I will."

Mark draw his varmint rifle and checked the safety, then held the barrel upwards awhile keeping a hand over the trigger, "Let's hope I don't have to use this." he said as the group heads into the forest.

**. . .**

The forest was normally quiet, any unnatural noise begged Tesla's attention. He heard it approach as a faint whisper, then it got louder. Just as Tesla was returning home from an overnight errand, he heard the chatter echo through the forest nearby, _They're back_, he thought, _And they brought company_.

That made him groan and feel sick inside. Tesla had to keep himself from falling asleep as he spent hours digging out that new safehouse, it even took longer just to get the equipment inside and camouflage the whole thing. The old Pikachu didn't expect the next encounter to happen _this _soon, he wasn't ready for another fight. Nonetheless, Tesla's never really ready. When it happens, it happens. This wasn't something to complain about. He stretched his arms and legs and loosened his aching joints, _Let's see what's up_.

Tesla climbed up a tree and climbed across the branches towards the road, all in the while being as stealthy as possible. When he reached the road, he saw the group approach in his direction, _Mark and Ash are back_, thought Tesla, _And they brought friends and... Wait, is that a Raichu?_

A Raichu? They brought a Raichu with them? Tesla knew what that meant and he was very offended by it. His blood boiled as glared at his evolved form. Raichus aren't natural, they can only evolve with the use of a Thunderstone. Not to mention they're very aggressive Pokémon. Fighting a Raichu was a real pain in the ass, even for a well-trained Pikachu. Tesla couldn't count how harsh his injuries were after defeating a Raichu, the fat mouse Pokémon broken his collarbone in one battle and he spent days in a hospital bed just to recover.

Tesla noticed the gun in Mark's hand, his "varmint" rifle. Designed to shoot Pikachus maybe. He could have brought in even more Pokémon, but no. He brought in a gun. Tesla's used to being shot at and he was very familiar with firearms. Too bad he didn't have any.

_Looks like the gloves have come off_, The old Pikachu thought to himself, _Might as well try something new_.

They were heading towards him, still chattering among each other without much anxiety. If they kept walking, they could eventually reach his safe zone. He wasn't in the mood for any more deaths today. Tesla was tired from his midnight errand and for this to happen on him... This wasn't going to be a good day, not a good day at all. Tesla took a deep breath and exhaled, _Well here it goes_.

**. . .**

"This forest is sure quiet," said Ash, "I can't hear any wildlife activity."

"Maybe Tesla drove them out." Mark added.

"Will Tesla appear at all?" asked Carley.

"His ears are quite sharp enough for him to hear anything that goes on around this forest, I bet he already sensed our presence."

Raichu placed a hand on Pikachu's back, he looked at him and nod, "Pikachu." he said to him.

"Raichu Rai," said Raichu, "Raichu Raichu chu."

"Pika Pika?"

"Raichu."

_They must be trying to find some common ground._ Ash thought_._

"Looks like Raichu and Pikachu are getting along." Ash noted.

"Raichu's very kind-hearted," said Henry, "A bit of a surprise, since Raichus tend to have quite a temper."

"Oh, do you have any other Pokémon other than Raichu?"

"No."

"What about you Carley?"

"I do have a couple of Pokémon on me," said Carley, "A Flaffy and a Luxio, that should help."

"I have some Pokémon on me that might put a beating in Tesla." said Ash.

"Stick to the plan Ash." reminded Mark.

The silence was interrupted with a loud bang as a streak of bluish-white light ripped across the road in an instant, Ash whipped around towards the source and saw a tree splintered in half. It toppled over the road, blocking the immediate way out. Raichu lost his balance and fell on his rump, Pikachu's eyes blinked as he tried to make sense of the lighting. Emolga squealed and quickly jumped on Mark's shoulder for dear safety. Everybody else didn't know what to do next, "He trapped us in!" cried Henry.

Tesla jumped from the trees and landed in the middle of the road before the group, charged up with anger and electrical energy. Pikachu jumped off Ash's shoulder and got into a stance, ready to make a sudden move on him, "Stand your ground Pikachu," ordered Ash, "Remember, he got us pinned in!"

Raichu stepped forward all fired up, ready to attack when given the word. Pikachu and Raichu won't be alone however when Carley stepped forward.

"Flaffy, Luxio, I choose you!" Carley tossed out a couple of Poke balls and the two Pokémon appeared as commanded.

"Flaffy." said Flaffy.

"Luxio." said Luxio.

Mark aimed his 6mm rifle at Tesla but kept the trigger off the finger, "Raichu makes the first move!"

"Got it," said Henry, "Raichu, Thunderbolt!"

"Raichu!"

Raichu burst into static and unleashed a two powerful arks of electricity at Tesla. The old Pikachu simply dodge rolled out-of-the-way and the Thunderbolt struck harmlessly into the ground.

"Luxio, Flaffy," called out Carley, "Use Thunderbolt on the ground around Tesla's feet."

"Smart move Carley." said Mark.

"Flaaaffy!"

"Luuuxio!"

The two Pokémon fired 2 Thunderbolts just a meter away from Tesla, he simply jumped up and dodged the indirect attack. He landed back onto the ground on all fours and showed and smirked, almost like he was taunting the group, "Pikachu," said Ash, "Energy Ball!"

"Pikaaachu!"

Pikachu held up his tail and formed a yellow ball of charged plasma, then jumped into the air and shot it at Tesla like a dodgeball. He back flipped and avoided the Energy Ball completely, Pikachu watched in disbelief as Tesla landed on his hind legs.

"Oh screw this," said Mark, "Emolga, Shock Wave!"

"Emolga!"

Emolga jumped into the air and unleashed a wave of electricity at Tesla, the old Pikachu took the full force of the Shock Wave head on and stumbled back. When Emolga landed back on the ground, the dust cleared to reveal that Tesla didn't appear to have taken any damage at all. But he was enraged, showing his teeth. Ash saw they were tan and partially rotten, jumping the fear factor higher than it normally would.

"Oh this is bad." muttered Mark.

"Raichu," said Henry, "Iron tail!"

Raichu jumped up and his tail turned to steel, then charged at Tesla to take a swing on him. Tesla jumped out of the way in time, then gave a swift kick into Raichu's gut, the mighty mouse Pokémon back flipped and flopped on his back in a hard fashion possible, "Raichu," said Henry, "Are you alright?"

Raichu got back up on his hind legs and shook off the dust, "Raichu!"

**. . .**

_How much crap are they going to throw at me? _Tesla angrily thought.

With intense concentration, the whole world went orange and time slowed to a crawl. Tesla sucked up enough air to completely fill his lungs to the max, then charged up his electricity. The old mouse Pokémon let out a grin as he punched the energy straight into the ground. Small worms of white light streaked across the dirt road in all directions, within a quarter of a second each human and Pokémon flashed with bright white light.

When the world resumed normal color and speed, Tesla nearly laughed as all of his opponents collapsed on the ground.

**. . .**

Ash felt his legs lock up, he collapsed to the ground and watched as his friends followed suit. That was a total surprised, they didn't expect Tesla to pull off such a move. To come to think of it, Ash thought it was impossible for a Pikachu to perform such an electric attack. Regardless how, everybody was incapacitated and in no shape to run away.

"My legs!" screamed Henry as he tried to shake away the cramps.

"OW!" squealed Carley.

Pikachu barely moved as Raichu rolled on his back, screaming for the pain to stop. Flaffy and Luxio got back to their feet and shrugged it off as Emolga laid on the ground crying, after a brief moment the cramps had subside and everyone got back to their feet, "I thought my muscles are going to tear themselves apart there," said Mark, gripping the gun as tight as humanly possible, "Emolga, you're alright?"

"Emolga!" said Emolga as he struggled to stand.

Ash saw the look on Tesla's face. He was no longer angry, but... satisfied? The smile and serious look in his eyes reminds Ash of Tesla's younger self in the photos back at the library. That can only mean one thing, the tables were turned against them.

Without warning, Tesla unleashed a powerful thunderbolt upon Flaffy and Luxio. They screamed in agony as the electricity crippled their muscles and paralyzed them, Carley couldn't stop screaming from the horror, and so foolishly charged at Tesla to get him to stop, "Carley," cried Mark, "Back off."

Instead of blasting her with electrical energy, Tesla simply stuck out his foot and tripped her as she tried to take a swing at him with her fist. Carley collapsed onto the ground face first, Ash was stupefied on how simple that was. Tesla quickly hopped on her back and pulled out her two Poké balls. He aimed it at a now defeated Luxio and Flaffy and the return beam blasted out, they both turned into pure energy and returned to their Poké balls. When they shrank, Tesla held onto them tightly and took off into the forest on his hind legs.

"My Pokémon!" screamed Carley.

"Raichu," said Henry, "Fetch him!"

"Get him Pikachu!" ordered Ash.

Pikachu took off after him first as Raichu struggled to keep up, since Raichu was bipedal he was much slower, but he kept a good pace. Emolga rushed off after the two mouse Pokémon by climbing high up a tree, then jumped to the air flying, "Damn it Emolga," cried Mark, "We gotta chase after them guys!"

**. . .**

Tesla held on tight onto the Poké balls as two of the members of his own kind nipped at his heels. He made a random turn and managed to loose them for a brief moment, Tesla quickly stashed the Poke balls in a small hole in a tree, he'll pick these up later. Now with free hands, Tesla got on all fours and took off in full speed. He waited for a few seconds before looking back, he saw Pikachu and Raichu blasted past the secret stash without even stopping.

_None the wiser_. He thought.

Tesla zig-zagged through the forest, trying to avoid the thick trees and their loose branches. As he ran, either Pikachu or Raichu unleashed special electrical attacks on him. Each Thunderbolt missed him completely, Tesla had no intentions of firing back, he needed the energy. The old Pikachu quickly looked around for a trap he placed before hand...

There. That small clearing that was no more than 3 meters wide. Tesla shot towards it so fast that he made the jump across the trap without tripping it.

He slowed down a bit and looked over his shoulder, Pikachu tripped on a branch and fell as Raichu blundered right past him... And into the center of the trap. The whole ground around him gave from the instant he set foot on it, the thick leaves disintegrated as the trap swallowed Raichu whole.

Pikachu quickly got up and ran past the hole, he didn't bother to even stop to glance down in it. Tesla saw how angry he was, really angry. The old Pikachu continued running as the younger one followed not too far behind.

**. . .**

"Raichu!" cried Henry when he saw Raichu sink into the earth.

Ash didn't approach the massive black hole, he couldn't make any sense out of it on how Tesla managed to dig such a drop. Henry got on his belly and looked down as far as he can humanly go, "Raichu!" his voice echoed down the hole.

"Raichu!" screamed a faint voice within the blackness, followed by some crying.

Mark looked up and aimed his gun, "I have Tesla in my sights," he said, "He's not getting away."

Ash looked up and saw Tesla at least 50 meters away, with Pikachu hot on his tail. Seeing how close the two Pikachu were to each other, Ash's eyes went big as Mark took aim, "Don't-"

_Click_.

**. . .**

Tesla felt something hot stabbed him in the arm, since his adrenaline wasn't as strong as it once was the pain surged up his arm and attacked his brain in sheer force, "AHH!" he let out a scream that shot through the forest like his powerful Thunderbolts.

_Get back onto the road_. His instincts told him.

Fighting the pain, Tesla managed to get back onto the dirt road. He looked back and saw Pikachu was ride behind him, and that annoying Emolga suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Gliding through the air as if he was flying, _Almost there!_

Tesla ran as fast as he could, the pain quickly subside for the moment but the blood continued to ooze. He head straight down the road as the younger Pikachu tried to get hit him with Thunderbolt after Thunderbolt, running out of energy and time Tesla pressed on and saw safety up ahead.

_Almost there now, just a little farther._

**. . .**

"I got him," said Mark, as the group chased after him, "I got a direct hit!"

"Now all we have to do is follow the blood trail." said Henry.

"You could have shot my Pikachu Mark!" said Ash.

"I know what I shot!"

"You could have killed either of them!"

"These rounds don't go through skulls very well!"

"Stop arguing and keep running!" cried Carley.

The blood trail quickly came into view. There wasn't much blood, but there was enough to follow. It quickly led them back to the road where the profile was much more apparent, Ash can see up ahead that Pikachu and Emolga were up ahead, "There they are," said Mark, "Quick, follow them!"

The group quickly hurried as fast as their legs can take them, just as they near the Pokémon Ash can see what looked like small lights in the trees. They were glowing bright, standing out well from the natural environment. Ash puzzled to himself, what do they mean? Just as he was only 10 meters away from Pikachu, he saw it. Small thin wires, barely noticeable, snaked across the road in a tight manor. It was confirmed when Tesla jumped over one of the thin wires and almost touched the one above that, but kept one running. Pikachu however, was locked onto him to even notice.

"Pikachu," cried Ash, "Stop!"

Pikachu blundered into the thin wire Tesla jumped over and he instantly glowed bright light, it was so bright that it nearly blinded Ash. Pikachu's momentum alone made him clear the wires, but the damage is done. The Pokémon flipped a couple of times and landed face first onto the ground, his limbs twitched for a brief few agonizing seconds before stopping. The electric wires sparked madly with electricity, as if they were angry from being tampered with. The whole group screeched to a halt as the menacing electricity struggled for equilibrium. A few seconds later, the loose electrons stabilized and the electric fence and became invisible.

Emolga landed on the ground and rushed back onto Mark's shoulder, completely petrified from what he saw happened to his friend. Everyone's jaw dropped, completely unresponsive as silence returned to the forest. Ash stared at Pikachu on the verge of breaking down, his little buddy lay helpless at the mercy of his own kind. Looking more closely, Ash saw he wasn't breathing. That shoved a stake through his heart.

"Damn this electric fence!" curse Mark, snapping everyone out of their trance.

Tesla quickly looped around and saw what happened, he too was horrified. Ash saw the bullet wound Mark gave him. Even though it was just a 6mm round, it looked quite bad, since it was designed for rodents. Tesla seemingly ignored it as he crept to Pikachu. The sudden changed of attitude stunned Ash, does Tesla really cared of Pikachu? For once, Tesla's good side was showing. Ash can sense it. Though there was sympathy, Ash felt no empathy coming off of him. That doesn't make any sense, but Ash doesn't care at this point.

As Tesla approached Pikachu, Mark raised up his gun and aimed it at Tesla, "Stand down, Mark." said Ash.

Mark flipped the safety to the off position and strapped the gun back onto his shoulder, his face was more pale than a ghost, "What have we done?"

**. . .**

_Don't die on my watch buddy. _Tesla thought as he looked over the Pikachu.

This wasn't what he expected, no one had ram into the electric fence before. The high amperage and voltage was too much for anyone, not even for an electric-type Pokémon. The Pikachu stood no chance, the power of the electric fence was well over his limit.

The electric fence kept the humans and their Pokémon at bay, they knew Tesla now have all the cards. All they can do was watch. He turned Pikachu over on his back to better assess him, he placed his ear directly onto his chest to check for a heartbeat. He got none...

_Damn._

Pikachu had taken all that energy into his chest, the not so noticeable horizontal line across it said otherwise. It had stopped his little heart, which knocked him out from the loss of blood pressure to his brain. There wasn't much time. Tesla placed one hand on Pikachu's chest and another on his side. He took a deep breath, then pumped a little bit of his electrical energy into the mouse Pokémon's body. Pikachu arched his back at the sudden surge of electricity, but didn't stirred. Tesla tried it again, nothing. A third time, still nothing. His heart wasn't restarting.

"Pikachu!" cried the trainer.

Tesla can tell the trainer was on the verge of crying, along with everyone else. The poor thing had run into his fence, he didn't see it, he got no warning. The old Pikachu felt his own heart ache, but shed no tears. He stared at the Pikachu whose life had been snuffed out in an instant, a member of his own kind lay dead at his feet. All because of him. It didn't feel good at all, Tesla saw his younger self in this Pikachu, a self who was filled with joy and without a care in the world. He once been a hero a long time ago, it's now time to earn back that reputation.

_If he dies, so do you. _Tesla told himself.

He took a step back and took a deep breath, then gave Pikachu a quick Thunderbolt he could ever muster out. Pikachu lit up for a brief moment, his muscles jolted from the electricity surging into his body. When the Thunderbolt subsided, Pikachu took a deep breath, it was so loud that he almost sounded like a Jigglypuff.

_Well done you old coot_, Tesla told himself, _Now the hard part begins_.

**. . .**

"He brought him back," said Mark, "I can't believe it, he brought him back!"

Ash felt a rush of joy, but now wasn't the time to celebrate. Separated by the electric fence and at the mercy of Tesla, he felt like he needed to do something. Ash pulled out a Poké ball and took a deep breath, "Snivy, get Pikachu back with your Vine Whip!"

Snivy came out a second later, "Snivy!"

Just before she could use vine whip, Tesla instantly blasted Snivy with a powerful Thunderbolt for a brief second. Ash gasped as Snivy slumped backwards, defeated, "Well that sucked." muttered Henry.

"Shut up, Henry!" barked Mark, seemingly defending Snivy.

Tesla got up on his hind legs and hoisted Pikachu onto his back, Ash knew what was happening almost instantly. That old Pikachu was going to take his Pikachu, the thought felt as bad as watching him die. Ash _had _to do something, "Tesla," the trainer called out, "Stay where you are and listen!"

Tesla Westinghouse stopped and turned, his eyes showed he was annoyed but was in no position to fight anymore. Had the fence not been there, Tesla would have lost this battle and this war, "We came here to talk to you, not to fight or capture you! We know about Irvin, we know what's your situation's like. I've seen Pokémon been in your situation before, just please stand down. We can help you!"

**. . .**

Tesla didn't know what to do, he felt his heart had been touched by a great force. But no, this wasn't the time to give in. He had a Raichu that needs to be plucked out of the trap and a couple more Pokémon that needed retrieving. It became apparent that his territory was compromised. Tesla sensed Ash's aura, it felt pure. So pure that his words speak the truth. To come to think of it, several trainers had used the same tactic and words to get to him. They almost captured him with potato sacks and nets, even if Ash was telling the truth he couldn't just trust him... Yet.

_Move Tesla_, He told himself, _Get out of dodge!_

**. . .**

Ash saw the look in Tesla's eyes through his goggles, they were showing affection. A sign that he's finally getting through to him, _Bingo. _He thought.

Without warning, Ash's legs cramped with a loud buzzing sound and he dropped to the ground. Everybody else dropped from the shock, the pain was more excruciating than last time.

"What was that for?" Mark cursed at the old Pikachu.

Ash looked back up and saw Tesla walking away with his Pikachu, he sat there on his knees and watched the two Pikachus vanished within the bushes. Tesla didn't look back, nor Pikachu resisted. He just walked away like nothing even happened. The two disappeared into the bushes, and they were gone, just like that.

A hand appeared in front of Ash's vision, he looked up and saw it was Mark who struggled to stand from the massive cramps he received seconds before, "Come on Ash," said Mark, "Let's be going."

Ash wanted to refuse, but Mark's right. The fence prevented him from reclaiming his Pikachu and there was no way around it. He would have to accept the fact that Tesla would be watching Pikachu for a while. Mark lend out his hand and Ash took it. No one said a word as they got back to their feet, they just turned back where they came and started walking. Emolga remained silent, his eyes were filled with tears and fright. Snivy quickly got back on her feet and followed behind, grumbling under her breath in frustration at what just happened. The group soon left the forest and walked back to Mark's house, with whatever was left of their prides.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	10. Chapter X

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter X_

"K," said Trent, "You have any plans on what to do with Tesla once you catch him?"

Kissinger took a sip of his coffee, it tasted more bitter than usual, "I'm not sure."

"I know what to do to him, I'll dump him at the nearby jail and get him a lawyer. A pretty good one the matter of fact."

"Tesla's too smart for a lawyer."

"We'll ask him if he wants one."

"If he ever speaks, a clever trick for suspects to get out of jail is to not say anything until they're in court. Who's going to take the case by the way?"

"Judge McReary agreed. What makes this more interesting is that he's a Westinghouse fan, so it's going to be personal for him once he starts cracking Tesla."

"Trent, a lot of our generation around these parts are Westinghouse fans, Tesla just happened to be the most favorite of Irvin's Pokémon."

"All because he doesn't lose battles."

"Right, but now things changed. Tesla may had inspired millions into Pokémon training, even saved lives at times, but now he had became an outlaw and had killed."

"He does have a record before hand, you do realize."

"Yeah, but that was only when he was young."

Kissinger got up from the table and poured himself another cup of coffee, "I wonder what drove such a Pokémon to a life like that."

"What do you mean?" Trent asked.

"Tesla was at the top of his game, and he walked away from it all when Westinghouse died."

"He could be pressured into it Kissinger, remember that a lot of trainers showed up at Irvin's house the day after Irvin was pronounced dead, hoping to get a hold of his Pokémon. You seen the look these Pokémon had on their faces, Tesla had some of them for decades. Irvin said that they looked up to Tesla, those still around today still do."

"He managed to get along with them just fine."

"Amazing he ever did."

Kelly came walking into the cafeteria and approached Kissinger, he nearly dropped his coffee when he seemingly showed up out of nowhere, "We're going to have the raid tonight," he said, "They're going to do it with the SWAT team."

"How many officers?"

"At least 1,500."

Kissinger's eyes went big, "1,500!?"

"Yup," said Kelly, "They're not taking any chances on this one."

"Damn." said Trent.

"You wanna supervise it Kissinger, you're the one who set it in motion?"

Kissinger thought for a moment, "Sure, my son already had his try. So it's my turn."

"Well then, we best fit you into some SWAT gear."

"Sir, I'm an investigator, not a heavy-duty civilian soldier."

"That's not what you filled out in your application. Besides, this is _your _case now, officially. You'll see to it that we get Tesla, either dead or alive."

"Yes, sir."

"How about this K, you go take the day off and prepare for the police raid. Come back here around 10PM, if you don't show up we're doing it without you."

"Um, thanks Kelly."

"Maybe you should spend some more time with your son. How's he doing by the way?"

"He's cooking up something, maybe he's going out to nab Tesla again."

"You should have him join the raid." Trent smirked.

"No, no, no, no, that's nota good idea."

"How is his Emolga?"

"Still furry and cute. Tesla bashed him in the head with Iron Tail and gashed the top portion of his scalp, Mark managed to fix his head up and he's doing quite fine."

"One of his Pokémon got injured?" Trent asked

"Yeah, Mark was emotional about him more than his other Pokémon."

"You should go see him K," said Kelly, "Just go."

"Alright, see you tonight."

Kissinger finished his coffee and walked out of the police department. When he got into his squad car, he thought to himself what to do with Tesla if he ever got a hold of him. Tesla had killed, injure, maybe torture other Pokémon. Some humans went missing out in that forest, most never return. There's no doubt of what might had happened to them, it gave birth to a lot of stories about Tesla. Cases where people come out of the forest with 2nd to 3rd degree burns, others with parts of their limbs paralyzed, Pokémon who received a coma and later don't remember anything when they woke up. The pattern was periodically, at least once a month. Tesla mainly keeps to himself, he only comes out of that forest when he's hungry...

_Hungry..._

That got Officer Kissinger thinking, as he drove down the road back home he thought of all the times Tesla was reported by someone. It was always the same story, Tesla get's spotted and he runs away. Or, that person who reports him decides to try to battle him with his Pokémon. That always ends in disaster.

_Only comes out when he's hungry_...

Tesla was no picky eater, back before Irvin died he recalled Tesla eating people food. Irvin never feeds him Pokémon food, just like Mark with his Emolga. He can eat anything up to freshly cook food to rotten cold food, somehow not getting sick in the process. It took a moment to realize that Kissinger made a big mistake, the smartest thing to do was to open a new front on Tesla. Instead of coming after him directly, like everybody was doing for the past 20 years, he can always clamp down on Tesla's food supply. Wild fruits and vegetables are few and far between out in Faraday Island, Kissinger wondered why he hadn't thought of this before.

When Kissinger pulled up on his driveway, he fished out his cell phone and dialed the mayor's office number, "Mayor Dixon here."

"Hey Dix, this is Kissinger."

"Oh hey Kissinger, what can I do for you?"

"We were on the wrong track the whole time about going after Tesla, I just realize we're looking it at the wrong angle for the past 20 years."

"Sounds like you struck gold, what is it?"

"Tesla only comes out of the forest and pops up randomly in Faraday City when he's hungry, among the majority of the Tesla sightings is always around places where people throw out their unfinished food."

"Explain."

"There's little to no fruits and vegetables out there in the wild Dixon, if you can get a city-wide campaign on cleaning up the used food in a faster rate we may be able to make an impact on Tesla."

"I'll get a couple laws passed right away, I'll even try to beef up the sanitation department. Faraday City had thrown out a lot of food in recent decades, even more food than it ever consumes. Cutting out a huge portion of the waste will also might force Tesla to seek greener pastures."

"He has nowhere to go Dix, he's just not leaving anytime soon."

"And the bounty will be claimed eventually, looks like Tesla's reign is finally coming to a close."

"Yes, it is."

"Maybe you'll get a promotion out of this Kissinger, I'll pass the proposal up to your boss."

"Thanks, I call you back if I find anything on Tesla."

"Okay Kissinger, thanks for calling."

"Bye."

Kissinger pocketed the phone and stepped out of his squad car, when he entered the house he saw that Mark had brought a few friends over. They all sat in the sofas, but it didn't appear to be that they were watching TV. Ash didn't appear to happy, Mark seemed to be flipping through the channels, Emolga just slept on Mark's lap, and Mark's friends Henry and Carley appeared just as bummed out as Ash. Sitting on the coffee table was Mark's varmint rifle, unloaded with the safety turned on. The magazine clips were nowhere in sight, but it was already clear that he used it recently.

"Hey son." said Kissinger.

"You're home early," said Mark, "You caught us at a bad time."

"What happened?"

"We've encountered Tesla again," said Ash, "This time we brought in more people, and packed a bit of heat."

"You lost any Pokémon?"

"We lost 4," said Mark, "Tesla kidnapped two awhile they're in their Poke balls, one fell into one of his traps, and the last one blundered into an electric fence. They all survived, but are now in Tesla's custody."

Not what Emmett wanted to hear, he tried his best to contain his emotions. He couldn't work up much anger anyway, cause this was more of a family problem than a city problem, "Did you use that rifle?" he asked sternly.

"Yes," said Mark, "I shot Tesla in the arm, he just shrugged it off."

Kissinger went silent for a moment, then turned to Ash, "Did Tesla took your Pikachu?"

"Yes," said Ash, "Zapped another Pokémon of mine when I ask it to help him."

"Tesla took my Raichu," said Henry, "Maybe that's what got him angry."

"Despite the loss," said Mark, "It was a mild success. Ash managed to get through Tesla by telling what we're there for, he clearly understands what we're doing. But he's still playing the game."

"You sure about that?" Kissinger asked.

Mark looked at his Dad, "The expression he showed on his face wasn't seen in 20 years."

"Well son. Normally I would scold you for going back there, again. But this time you came prepared and accomplished something despite the losses. To top it off, it's been a family thing for 3 generations. Now to something else just as important and related, the police raid's a go."

Mark's ears perked, "It is?"

"They want me to supervise it tonight, they even ask if you and your friends want to join in."

"We already did our part, it's your turn dad."

"I also discovered one of Tesla's weaknesses."

All heads turned towards Kissinger, "You did?" Mark asked.

"Tesla's heavily dependent on the food waste Faraday City throws out everyday. The island doesn't have much wild fruits and vegetables, they don't grow well in the soil. I ask the mayor to take advantage of this weakness and he agreed, we're now fighting Tesla on _two_ independent fronts."

"When will the mayor act on it?"

"Immediately, but it will take a while to get it all underway. Mark, if there's any food scraps in the recycling bins in or around our house, you take it out in the backyard and _burn _it all. Burn it down until there's nothing left but ash and activated carbon."

"Might as well go to the store now and buy some butane," Mark turned to Ash, "Oh Ash, I think your Oshawott is awake now. We can stop by the Pokémon Center and check up on them."

"Sure." said Ash with little excitement.

Mark picked up his rifle and headed upstairs, Ash remained seated and scratch Emolga's back. He smiled and turned so Ash can get the spots he needed to get scratch, "Emo." he muttered.

"What's wrong Ash?" Kissinger asked.

"Pikachu," said Ash, "He nearly died. Tesla resuscitated him then carried him off. We couldn't do anything because of the electric fence, I had my Pikachu taken from me before but no one had ever walked away with him in that manner. Pikachu's my first Pokémon, sir. He's been with me in almost every corner of the globe during my journey."

"I'm sorry about that. Hold on, you guys said about an electric fence?"

"Tesla had an electric fence up, a well built one in fact. Pikachu ran into it, the high voltage stopped his heart as he shot through the other side. Scared all of us senseless."

"He's relating to you Ash, he could be trying to figure you out for who you really are. Whatever you're doing, you're doing the right thing. But it's now completely out of your control and on the edge of the knife, if Tesla still has him I'll try to have the police get him back."

Ash straightened his back as a surge of confidence returned, "Then I might be able to see Pikachu soon, I just hope Tesla isn't doing anything harsh to him."

"It's good talking to you Ash, I hope you reunite with him soon."

"And my Raichu," said Henry, "It's not easy getting a hold of one you know."

Kissinger walked upstairs and went into his bedroom. He laid on his bed and rubbed his temples, he doesn't feel like punishing Mark for his disobedience. No, he's too old to be punished. He's almost an adult now, and the fact that he came prepared for such a foolish act shows he's responsible. Mark always had a knack for doing the right things for stupid reasons. And his Emolga, that Pokémon who stuffs himself with junk food before sleeping it off, he always shown his loyalty to Mark.

Mark was only 10 when he first received Emolga. He was late at the Pokémon Lab because of a poor alarm clock, eventually most of the starter Pokémon was taken. But not one, that lonely Emolga with the brown and white fur sleeping in the back of the pen. The professor explained that all the kids that came in first picked Emolga because of his cuteness, but soon realized how lazy he when they tried to cuddle him. Emolga didn't even react much, he just took one good look at the kids before falling back asleep. When Mark saw Emolga sleeping there, he instantly wanted it. Once Emolga was in his arms, the Pokémon stirred and cooed as Mark scratched the back of Emolga's head. They became best friends before they left the lab.

Kissinger recalled how Mark often fed Emolga. Sometimes simple foods, other times its just junk food. Emolga's couch potato personality seemed to suit Mark well in most situations, as he enjoyed carrying him. Not only Emolga was lazy, he was also, how to put it: Unintelligent. "Dumber than a bag of hammers" was the best way Mark can describe him. There was that one occasion where Emolga was playing in the sink and accidentally caught his tail in the garbage disposal, it took off most of the fur off his tail as he scrambled out of the sink and flopped to the floor. Even though Mark couldn't stop laughing from Emolga's embarrassment, he showed he took it seriously by letting Emolga cry on his shoulder to ease the pain of humiliation.

But that doesn't mean he learned his lesson, he never does. Insulting him doesn't seem to faze him one bit. Call him whatever name you can think of, and you'll only get stares in response. No wonder Emolga doesn't cry every time Mark calls him names, though he does shed tears when Mark teases him a bit.

All this had been going on for years now, and Emolga spent most of his life with Mark, sitting on the couch eating potato chips and drinking soda pop. One of these days, Emolga might get a run for his money. No, not a case like the incident with Tesla. A _real _situation where he's in a heap load of chaos. Kissinger sat up on the bed and looked at a photo of Emolga, which sat on his dresser. It showed Emolga laying on the couch, snoring loudly with empty chip bags surrounding him. That was the most interesting picture Mark had taken of Emolga, Kissinger wondered why it now sat on his dresser.

_I wonder if Mark will ever get out there and experience the real world, _Kissinger thought, _If he ever does, he better take Emolga with him. That Pokémon is just a heap of trouble._

To come to think of it, Tesla, indirectly, got them out of the house. Emolga finally got a taste of battle with him, and of course, was defeated. Mark hadn't really trained Emolga much, but maybe that will change as time pass... If time pass.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	11. Chapter XI

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter XI_

"Wake up," said a near but faint voice, "Hello? Wake up."

Pikachu's eyes fluttered open but saw only blurred objects, he shuts his eyes and goes back to sleep.

"WAKE UP!"

_WHACK!_

A hard punch strike Pikachu straight in the cheek, this time his eyes shot opened and saw something yellow. At first he thought he was seeing himself in the mirror, until he saw the modified welding goggles. When his vision cleared, he knew who he was looking at, "You gave your friends quite a scare," said Tesla, with actual human words, but sounding slightly hoarse, "It wasn't easy reviving you, but I got it done."

Pikachu saw he was in some sort of cave. It was so small that he had no problem touching the ceiling with his hand, there was enough room to walk on his hind legs but not tall enough to jump. The walls weren't rock or stone, but mud. Just rich brown earth recently exposed, giving off a strong dirt smell. The place was lit up by a few light bulbs, the electric cords to them led outside where the drone of a generator advertised its presence. Somewhere at the wall was a HDTV, a small one that's perfect for a small Pokémon like Pikachu. Next to it was a small portable radio, its cord and the TV's were all connected with the same orange extended cord as the crude lamps. Embedded in the mud wall was a tall box whose design was similar to a gym locker, maybe used for storage.

Still sleepy, Pikachu tried to move. He discovered he was in a solid metal cage, thick 2cm bars and two slabs of heavy metal. Conveniently there was a blanket on the bottom of the cage, which helped served for patting. Despite it being cramped, the cage was tall enough for Pikachu to stand on his hind legs.

_Where am I? _He thought as he grabbed the metal bars for support, Pikachu could barely stand.

"You're okay ketchup boy," Tesla asked, "I'm sure you're tougher than that, son."

Pikachu recalled he was chasing Tesla, but that was all he could remember, "Pikachu!" he barked at Tesla, asking where was he.

"You're in my safehouse," said Tesla, "I built it overnight, I barely had enough energy to go home," he then sighed and shook his head, "I only wanted to sleep, but you guys showed up. Boy, you made me do so much work today that my joints are acting up."

"Pikachu!" Pikachu screamed at Tesla, he tried to thrash the bars loose with his hands but failed. He took a deep breath and tried to let out a Thundershock, "Pika-"

Tesla quickly reached into the cage and grabbed Pikachu's hand, for a few seconds everything went yellow. Pikachu felt his strength drain from his body as electricity flied all over the place, as if they were trying to escape. When Tesla released his grip, the electric sparks disappeared and Pikachu slumped onto the cage floor exhausted. He laid there for a moment then tried to do the Thundershock again, all he got was tiny sparks, "Don't waste your energy," said Tesla, "I saved your life Pikachu, you nearly died on your own accord."

"Pikachu?" Pikachu asked.

"You ran into my fence when the danger was obvious, you struck one of the wires with your chest and you were out of commission in a split second. Everybody was so heartbroken when they thought you died, Mark's Emolga cried so loud that it pierced my eardrums. But you survived, thanks to me."

Pikachu pulled himself using the cage bars, he was frightened in discovering how weak he was, "Pika, P Pikachu..." he asked what Tesla did to him.

"I just drained some of your energy," said Tesla, "Just enough to prevent you from casting any _unnecessary _electric attacks."

"Pikachu," Pikachu asked where Ash and his friends are, "Pikachu... Pikachu!"

"Not your concern, but they're not going to look for you right away. The FCPD is breathing down my neck at the moment and I'm running out of options, not to mention I now have to deal with the strain."

Tesla show a bandaged wound on his upper left arm, Pikachu was surprised he didn't see it at first. Looking closely, the bandage appeared to be a used towel. It was brown from soaking up blood, now it was just oozing out the excess, Pikachu felt a shiver down his spine when he remembered Mark's gun. Tesla saw the look in his eyes and calmed down, "May I?"

Before Pikachu can respond, Tesla held out his hand and paced it on the center of Pikachu's chest. He pressed it there for a moment, Pikachu began to feel more scared than angry. Whatever he was doing, he seemed to know how, "Your heart is strong," said Tesla, "Very strong, so tough that it was difficult getting it restarted."

Tesla retracted his hand and stepped away for a moment, Pikachu watched as he pulled open a small wooden box and reached inside. He stepped back when Tesla pulled out a gun.

It was a small handgun, at first glance it almost look like it was made out of straws. On closer inspection, Pikachu saw it was made mostly out of plastic. Tesla cocked the gun and glanced at Pikachu, "You're afraid of firearms, are you?"

"Pika Pika PIKA PIKA!" cried Pikachu as he pressed the back of the cage as far as he can go.

Tesla held it up, pointing it straight at Pikachu's forehead. Pikachu felt himself starting to hyperventilate as his blood pressure hit the roof. Tesla stood unfazed, he held his neutral expression as he pulled back the hammer on the gun with his thumb, "So tell me Pikachu: Are you afraid of the gun, or are you afraid of being shot by it?"

_What's your point!? _Pikachu thought, he tried to speak but his voice croaked.

He gulped as he gripped the cage bars behind him as tight as possible, Tesla let out a grin as his eyes got more serious, "The faster your heart beats, the faster you bleed. If you have enough adrenaline running through your system, you might not even feel it. I knew that the easy way, but I recently learned that the hard way. This won't hurt you one bit."

_POP!_

Pikachu gasped as his mouth shot wide open, he felt his blood freeze from the shock. Small fumes were escaping out of the tiny barrel, Tesla definitely pulled the trigger. Pikachu expected the gun to be so loud that it threatened to blow his eardrums, but it only gave off a loud pop that sounded similar to a click. Tesla held the barrel up to the ceiling, Pikachu saw that the magazine chamber was empty, "P-Pika?" Pikachu stammered.

"It's just a blank," said Tesla, "See."

He held up the small casing that he "fired," it was so small that Pikachu didn't actually see it fly out of the chamber, "2mm round," said Tesla, "They don't break the sound barrier, what you just heard was simply expanding gases from the gun. You would know the sound barrier is broken if your ears would deafen, the crack is far louder than the pop," Tesla noticed Pikachu trembling and fear, then frowned, "You expect me to just shoot you, I don't wanna hurt you!"

Pikachu felt his heart rate slow as he slid his back down the bars and sat on the floor of the cage, _What was that all about? _He thought.

Tesla dropped the gun back into the box and closed it, "If you thought you were alone, you're not. Look to your right."

Pikachu turned and saw Raichu in his own iron cage. The mouse Pokémon laid on his back unconscious, Pikachu wondered how he didn't notice him before. His cage was identical in size and shape as Pikachus, but it seemed too small for him to move as much, "Tubby here was a hard one to fish out of that hole," said Tesla, "Fell right into it, and you simply kept on going. Just ran past him, didn't even stop to help. I suppose we both have similar views on Raichus."

"Pika?" Pikachu asked what did he mean.

Tesla frowned, "Okay, nevermind then."

Raichu moaned and let out a snore, _He looks really out of it_. Pikachu thought.

"Anyway," said Tesla, "It's becoming night soon, there's something I need to take care of so why not you stay here until I return?"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu insisted on his release.

"Yeah," the old Pikachu said nonchalantly, "That will be soon."

Tesla turned and walked out of the small cave, a few seconds later the lightbulbs went dark and dead as the generator's hum ceased. Pikachu's vision nearly became pitch black as the only source of light now came from the mouth of the cave, which is now fading fast, "See you in a bit, boy." Tesla called from outside.

"Pikachu," cried Pikachu, "Pikachu!"

Pikachu tried to use Thunderbolt, but still got weak sparks around his cheeks. He looked at his hands in the dark, then looked back out the cave entrance. First he screamed at the top of his lungs, hoping for Tesla would come back and free him or Raichu would wake up. He was only answered with silence, Tesla was long gone and Raichu was still asleep. No, that old Pikachu can hear him, he's just ignoring him. Pikachu got up on his hind legs and try to muscle the bars off again. His 2nd attempt was more weaker than the last, Pikachu continued to scream and thrash at the bars until he no voice to scream and stamina to use.

_Come back_, Pikachu thought as he drop to his knees, _Please, come back_.

Pikachu slumped on the floor the cage and cried, fresh tears streak down his face and fell on the blanket. Pikachu stared at it for a moment, he grabbed the blanket and wrapped himself with it. He held his breath and listened, just the crickets from outside the cave and the sound of the Raichu snoring was all he heard. Tesla might not be back till daytime, the thought made things worse. The only comforting thing was that Pikachu wasn't alone, but he doesn't know this Raichu even though it had been friendly to him so far. What was Mark thinking on having a Raichu take on Tesla? Pikachu understands that it's difficult to beat a Raichu on its own, but Tesla was no ordinary Pikachu. Well, Mark might have now learned that the hard way.

The only hope now is Ash trying to find him, coming in like a white knight in shinning armor and saved him from this cage. He done that in the past, several times actually. But this was different. Pikachu had no idea where he was, nor he had no idea if he was still within the Faraday City limits. He couldn't have left the island, this is the only piece of land in 500 kilometers, _I must be still on the island_, Pikachu thought, _It makes sense, but where?_

Might as well ask Tesla that question tomorrow, Pikachu made himself comfortable in the blanket. It was next to impossible. His heart felt sore and broken from grief and sadness, or maybe that was from the electricity that both stopped and restarted it. Pikachu let out more tears until his eyes can't let out anymore, he wanted someone to hold him. Someone just to wrap their arms around him and make things feel better, but there was no one. No one...

"Pika..." Pikachu sobbed softly in a barely audible volume, so soft that the blanket muffled most of the sound. He shut his eyes and tried to sleep, it was going to be a long.

**. . .**

"It's midnight," Kissinger said into a radio mic, "The operation is a go."

"Roger K," said Trent, "Mission is a go."

Officer Kissinger put the mic back on its slot, _1,500 men_, he thought, _Under my watch for one night... Wow._

Kissinger sat behind the wheel of a black SUV, somewhere parked in a shady area of Tesla's forest. Through his night vision gear, he can see white humanoid figures snaked across the ground among the green background, all had their assault rifles out and ready for combat. Kissinger saw the signs his son boldly put up, _They look quite good_, he thought, _If we get Tesla, they may be a waste of time. Who knows? Might be used as a memorial or something. It's appropriate regardless._

His cell phone rang and he answered it, "Kissinger speaking."

"Kissinger, this is Kissinger." It was Mark's voice.

Kissinger chuckled, "How are you doing, son?"

"I just have a bad feeling about all this," said Mark, "Tesla has hostages Dad, _hostages_. And some of those hostages are my friends' friends."

"We're aware of that, Mark."

"I shot him square in the arm. If it ain't hurting then, it should be hurting now. Tesla has no medical supplies, what if his wound get's infected and-"

"Don't worry about that Mark, you might have just done him a favor."

"I might, I might not. Either way, it's sure is a wake up call. Tesla might be armed, I'm not sure but we've confirmed that he's a crackshot after a quick visit to the library."

"He never used a firearm after Irvin's death."

"But he sure is playing with electricity, remember about that electric fence. If you can bypass the fence, you may be able to nab Tesla, since he has nowhere to go. Though if he figures out his fence is down, he may be able to escape into the night by playing Tarzan."

"We have this place surrounded, he's not going anywhere anyway. How's things at home?"

"The whole place is locked up tight and a weapon within easy reach, Ash is asleep and Emolga is snuggled up right beside me. I managed to get Plusle and Minun back from the Pokémon Center, they're still a little dinged up but they're alright. It will be a while before I call them out for a purpose or something."

"What about Ash's Pokémon?"

"His Oshawott seemed okay, though he's a bit bummed about Pikachu disappearing. Ash's Oshawott is hard to read, he keeps popping out of his Poké ball too many times that it just became ridiculous. He's worried about Ash, I don't think he understands what's at stake here."

"Don't worry about him, let Ash handle Oshawott."

"Okay Dad, I'm going to bed now."

"Alright son, I'll be back before 2AM, hopefully."

Mark paused for a moment, "Oh Dad, Emolga says he loves you."

"Tell him I love him back."

"Okay... Goodnight Dad."

"Goodnight."

Kissinger hanged up the phone and pocketed it, "So far coast is clear," said Trent on the radio, "No sign of the target, things are a little quiet out here."

**. . .**

"Please keep in mind that the target is behind the electric fence, you'll need to bypass the fence in order to get through."

Trent pressed the talk button to his radio headset, "Copy K."

He signaled the other SWAT team members to move faster and kept a short lookout for anything reflective. Trent never thought he would be leading the assault on Tesla, he had done raids before but not on one at this scale. First it was an idea just 2 days ago, now that idea's in motion. Success or failure will be determined if Tesla is either captured or killed, Trent almost thought that putting Tesla down was the plan. He couldn't live like this forever.

_They should have gotten him 20 years ago_. Trent thought as he tightened the grip around his M-16's handle.

The SWAT team had all of Tesla's forest surrounded in a 360 degree fashion. No way Tesla will sneaked out of here, they have Swoobats in the sky, pinging away at the ground with their sonar abilities to find Tesla's signature. So far, nothing. Not yet, at least. Trent kept his eyes focused up ahead, searching for anything yellow. So far nothing stood out of the ordinary, after a few more steps Trent spotted a glowing ball of yellow light.

He crouched, his fellow SWAT team members got the message and quickly followed his lead. Trent held still as he looked closely at the ball of light, and discovered it was just a light bulb, and underneath that was a portion of the electric fence Kissinger warned him about. Trent pressed the talk button on his headset, " TL 1, we have visual on the electric fence. TL 2, you're ready?"

"Affirmative." said TL 2

"Are you sure?"

"100%"

"What about you TL 3?"

"We have visual on the fence and are awaiting orders." said TL 3.

"Swoobats, take out the power source or sources of that electric fence. When we see the light bulbs go out, we'll take that as the all clear. You got that?"

"Swoobat." said the Swoobat leader.

The next few minutes were agonizing, Trent held his breath and stared at the glowing light bulb of the electric fence. Waiting for it to burn out. He's surprised that Tesla had this much resources to build such a barrier, let alone spend all his time on it. Since he was on his own, the perimeter of the electric fence must be a small one. This should be easy on sneaking in and bagging Tesla before he have a chance to react.

Tesla's light bulb went dark and the night reassured itself, "Confirm that the fence is offline." Trent said into his mic.

"Confirmed." said TL 2 and TL 3.

"Swoobat." confirmed the Swoobat leader.

"Move in, but keep it quiet."

Trent signaled his team to push through towards the fence, he didn't automatically saw it until the wires were pressing against his forehead, _Careful. _He said to himself as he pushed the wires aside.

These were the cheap kind, galvanized. These wires had probably had enough amps to stop a human's heart cold, the Swoobats did their job well and managed to destroyed whatever was powering it. Trent got out his multi-tool and clipped a few wires on the fence, then he and his team pushed through. Still, they kept quiet, holding onto the element of surprise. It was all they have, Tesla might be hiding somewhere as he slept. He could be sleeping, so comfortable to be behind his simple barrier. Now that was gone, and they were in his private space, he's going to get a rude awakening.

The unnatural objects began to show up out of the blue, Trent spotted this mound of some sort. When he approached it, he can feel the heat coming off of it. Was Tesla inside? When he pulled off some of the leaves, he saw it was one of the generators that powered the fence. It's main electrical panel was blown out, destroyed by the Swoobats., _Maybe they'll get a promotion after this_. Trent thought.

With nothing else to see, Trent continued searching the place and found a small fire pit. It looked well used. He touched the blackened ash of the pit, it was cold. It hadn't been lit recently. There was also a small pile of leaves laid out in an oval fashion, Trent pressed down on it and saw how soft it was.

_His bed_, he thought, _This was Tesla's bed, and he's not in it. It's not even warm_.

A feeling sank into the pit of his stomach, he pressed the talk button of his headset, "Target is not home. Repeat, target is not home."

"No sign of him anywhere?" TL 2 asked.

"This is definitely his camp, but he's not at home. Signs say he's been gone for hours, well a long time before we even arrived."

"Copy," said Kissinger, "Search the place for anymore clues where Tesla might be."

"Roger K."

Trent searched the place with the rest of the SWAT team, they found more disabled generators and several gallons of bio-diesel fuel. They also found a few containers filled with fresh water, along with a distillation system. Tesla barely had some camping gear to make his while, and the fact that there's no food around here backed up Kissinger's theory that Tesla is dependent on the scrap food Faraday City throws out.

Just when he finally finished searching the place, something caught Trent's eye. It looked like a white round bowl, placed somewhere near a small cavity. Wondering what it was, Trent carefully approached it and used the barrel of his rifle to see what's underneath.

He had no time to react when he heard the click.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	12. Chapter XII

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter XII_

Kissinger drove back home, both enraged and saddened by the results. The operation went smoothly until the last minute. The fireball that shot out of the treeline was enough to call a ton of ambulances and fire trucks into the scene. After he called for backup, Kissinger tried frantically to get a hold of Trent. When he failed to answer, he drew his gun and ran straight into the blazing forest. There was enough fires burning in the canopy that he had no problem seeing, enough for him to dodge the primitive spike traps, pit falls, trip wires, or any other trap Tesla set up beforehand. When he approached the electric fence, Trent was being carried out of there by fellow officers.

His right leg was gone, nothing left but a burnt stump of a limb. Everything else was partially burned but not too bad. Kissinger saw his friend's face, his eyebrows were burnt off but he was still conscious. He looked like he's trying his hardest not to laugh, he even joked that he was glad the bomb didn't took off his face, _At least he still have his sense of humor_. Kissinger thought as he followed his comrades.

The FCFD quickly came in and battled the flames from both the ground and the air, more explosions rocked the forest but they weren't as powerful as the big one that started the chaos. Kissinger nearly lost his head when he was surrounded by disorganized response teams as both flashing lights from emergency vehicles and the firestorm that lit up the night. Eventually he snapped out of his delirium and headed back to the SUV, where he ordered all SWAT teams out of the area. Fellow water-type Pokémon helped with the fire fighting efforts, and within minutes the blaze was under control.

The ambulances got to work in loading the injured police officers, Kissinger saw that most of them didn't have burns but large gashes on their face and legs. One officer had a large wooden spike through his foot, another was trying to put pressure on a laceration underneath his jaw. The fact that Trent was the only one burned made Kissinger figure out that these injuries weren't related to the blast. They were from the many individual traps set up in the area. The SWAT team steered clear them when they came in, but when the fires erupted, they blundered into them in sheer panic when trying to escape.

Kelly quickly came onto the scene and found Kissinger sitting in the SUV with both hands on his temples, after explaining what happened to his boss Kelly had him come back to the station with him. After leaving the van to another officer, they made the trip back to the station where the full debriefing went down. Seeing how stressed Kissinger was, Kelly told him to go home and sleep the night off. They'll make sense of the mess in the morning. Kissinger nodded and left in his own squad car, but his mind was more focused on Tesla than anything else.

_The place was trapped_, he thought, _Since Trent was burned, did he triggered that major trap?_

Make sense if he did, since he lost a leg in the process. Kissinger slammed his fist on the steering wheel in frustration, then quickly gripped it, just nearly avoiding driving off the road. Kissinger pulled up to his subdivision and onto his driveway within a few minutes, he killed the engine and headed inside where he was greeted to a dark home.

Normally Mark was downstairs watching TV, but it looked like he didn't stay up late this time. It was a hard day today, well yesterday, since it's now 2AM. Kissinger kicked off his shoes and head straight into the room, he didn't bother getting dressed for bed, he just slumped on it and quickly fell to sleep.

**. . .**

Tesla waited until Kissinger started snoring, the old Pikachu had his back pressed against the wall with limbs spread out like a spy. He peaked into the room and saw the son of his trainer's friend out cold, sleeping off a hard day's work, _He's asleep now_, thought Tesla, _Better make this quick_.

He quietly closed Kissinger's door before crawling into the bathroom. Using the moonlight from the window to see, he opened up the cabinet and pulled out the First Aid Kit, _They still keep it here_, Tesla thought, _What else do they still have in their usual spots?_

Tesla quietly closed the bathroom door and opened up the kit, he ripped off his crude bandage and tossed it into the trash can. He winced as he poured Hydrogen Peroxide on his gunshot wound, now sterilized Tesla grabbed the tweezers and extracted the 6mm bullet out of the wound, _Thankfully Mark didn't hit any major blood vessels_, thought Tesla, _ Maybe I would've died just like that_.

Tesla wrapped up the wound with a fresh roll of gauze, after making sure it wasn't too tight or loose he sealed the bandage up with medical tape and packed the First Aid Kit back up.

With that done, Tesla took a deep breath and held it for a moment. He spent hours creating his plan, he knew all the possible escape routes and spots to lose the cops if followed. This might be difficult, since what he'll be carrying could be heavy. But he's strong enough to carry such a load on his back, it shouldn't be too difficult for an aging Pikachu.

Tesla picked up his weapon of choice, a flash-bang grenade. His target will make noise, no doubt about it. Not only will this be the distraction, it should cover the noise his target will make. The neighbors wouldn't be a concern, nor will the police. A GPS and cell phone jammer had been set up and the phone line to the neighborhood was cut. It took a long time for Tesla to get a hold of the jammers, 15 years to be exact. He'd been waiting for this moment to use them, and what was interesting that they're simply plugged into the wall downstairs.

_Using the human's power supply against them_, Tesla thought with a grin, _Amazing_.

Everything's quiet in this neighborhood, Tesla should have enough time to escape to safety. The trick is that he must be efficient when using that time, _Distraction, extraction, evade, escape_. Tesla thought.

Distraction, set off the flash-bang grenade. Extraction, grab the target. Evade, lose all pursuers. Escape, get out of dodge faster than getting into it, _Just how you taught me Irvin_.

Tesla exhaled and clutched the flash-bang, it was now or never. He crept out of the bathroom and silently crawled across the floor to Mark's bedroom. He cracked open the door and peaked in, he was soon greeted by loud snoring, _Heavy sleepers_, Tesla thought, _They just have to be heavy sleepers_.

Mark laid in the bed with his arms wrapped around Emolga. Tesla stared at the Pokémon for a moment, _The Pokémon feels well protected, clearly a false sense of security in this case. Emolga, you best be ready, cause things are going to change fast._

Tesla held up the flash-bang and pulled the pin, then tossed it onto the bed before hitting the deck.

**. . .**

_BANG!_

Kissinger's eyes shot open as his son's screams went through the walls, he quickly grabbed his 9mm and ran out of his bedroom, "Son," he called out, "Don't worry, I'm coming!"

Mark's bedroom door was wide open, just as Kissinger neared it he got a surprise of his life. A Pikachu came running out of the bedroom, it had Emolga right on its back and was holding on it with a single hand. Kissinger saw it had a bandaged arm, seemingly fresh. When the Pikachu made eye contact with him for a brief second, the welding goggles gave his identity away.

"Tesla!" Kissinger blurred out.

Tesla quickly scrambled down the stairs, with Kissinger not far behind. He ran downstairs and quickly discovered that Tesla was gone. He checked the rooms to see if he's hiding anywhere, Tesla's nowhere to be found, _He's gotta be down here! _Kissinger thought.

Not wanting to waste anymore time, Kissinger grabbed the phone and tried to call 9-1-1. But soon discovered it had no dial tone, he swore and slammed the phone back on its receiver.

"Dad!" Mark cried from upstairs.

Kissinger tried his cell phone, but discovered it had no signal. He tried calling anyway, it failed.

"Dad!"

Kissinger came running back upstairs and found Mark stumbling out of his room in his boxers, holding his varmint rifle in one hand and the other over his eyes, "Ugh, I can't see and my ears are ringing. What happened!?"

"Tesla's what just happened." said Kissinger.

"Damn, where's Emolga?"

"He took Emolga with him."

Mark swore, "Where did he go?"

"I followed him downstairs and he vanished."

"He's got Emolga, we gotta pick up his trail Dad!"

Kissinger heard a door open, he turned and saw Ash ran out of the bedroom, "What happened!?"

"Tesla's got Emolga," said Kissinger, "Go out and find him!"

**. . .**

Ash nodded and quickly head back to the bedroom, he grabbed his Unfezant's Poké ball then ran out to the front yard of the house, "Unfezant," he said, "I choose you!"

Unfezant came out in an instant, with wings waving with beautiful furry, "Unfezant!" she said.

"Tesla's got Emolga," said Ash, "Go and track him down!"

Unfezant didn't need more details, she already knew what was at stake, "Unfezant!"

Ash watched as Unfezant took to the sky and disappeared into the night, when he returned inside Mark and his Dad was just coming downstairs, "I can't seemed to get a signal on my cell phone," said Kissinger, "I'll try my squad car radio, hopefully that still works."

As Kissinger jogged outside to call the police, Mark turned on the lights and sat on the sofa, "Freaking Tesla got in and took him," he said, trying to contain his tears, "He took Emolga, he's my first Pokémon! Emolga's my best friend!"

Ash sat next to Mark and sat a hand on his shoulder, "Pikachu's my first Pokémon too, I know what you feel."

"I should have told you this before," sobbed Mark, "For every Pokémon Tesla kidnaps, not one ever escapes. Not even the ones in their Poké balls. I'm sorry Ash, I didn't wanna worry you about it!"

Mark reached for a box of tissues and blew his nose, then got more emotional, "Damn it, Emolga's like my baby brother! He's so delicate, very sweet and kind! He must be terrified out of his mind, maybe Tesla's torturing him and-"

Ash cut him off by giving him a hard slap across the face, Mark blinked twice and took a deep breath, "Thanks," he said, now calmed down, "I needed that."

Just last afternoon, they had gotten back some Pokémon from the Faraday City Pokémon Hospital. Mark managed to get his Plusle and Minun back after they recovered just enough to return home, Ash's Oshawott was also doing fine. The Pokémon missed him greatly, and he was quite happy to be reunited with him. Though he was a bit fazed that Pikachu wasn't with him, he must be getting some thoughts about replacing him. Course, Oshawott always wanna prove himself.

"If we're going to pick up on Tesla's trail," said Ash, "We'll need to know where he escape out of. Your Dad didn't see him escape anywhere, he might still be here for all we know."

"Yes," said Mark, "Good point, let's start searching outside and see where he might have gotten in."

Ash nodded and the two got up. They headed outside and began to search the edge of the house, Ash saw how well maintained it was and at first saw no immediate damage. The windows had no signs of being tampered with, the front and back door showed no damage, and the garage was untouched, "Find anything yet?" Mark asked as he met up with Ash after completing a loop around the house.

"No, nothing yet."

So he didn't use the doors and he didn't use the windows, so what did Tesla use? Ash looked up on the roof and checked to see if there was any entry. At first he thought it could be the chimney, but saw how well capped it was. Besides, Tesla couldn't survive the fall anyway, let alone climb up through it within a few seconds. Ash returned his attention back onto the ground, as he head to the backyard something caught his eye.

"Hey Mark," he called out, "I think I found something!"

Mark quickly returned to him, "What did you find?"

Ash pointed to the wall, a part of the sidings of the house appeared to be loose. Mark approached it and pulled a part of it back, behind it was a hole that lead to a cabinet in his kitchen. The hole was no more than 30cm wide and 25cm tall. There were no signs of any clawing, no sign of any unnecessary cuts. Due to the wood around it appearing to be rotting showed a sign that it may had been there for weeks, maybe even months. It was so well hidden that if Tesla were to put the siding back on properly, they wouldn't have even noticed it.

Mark kicked the wall of his house in anger, "Well son of a-"

**. . .**

Unfezant soared high above the sky, scanning the ground below for any signs of Tesla. The lights from Faraday City helped in navigation and illuminating some areas. She knew what to look for, and who Tesla's with. Thanks to Tesla's bright yellow fur, it may be easy for her to spot him.

She thought of all the things on what to do to Tesla once he found him. He wouldn't be expecting it. He probably feels so secure, so why even look up? Unfezant imagines coming down from above and attacking him, even imagine the look on his face when he tries to fight back. It's what Ash wanted, what he commanded her to do. Find this Tesla and bring Emolga back.

After wandering off a bit, she refocused herself when she thought she saw something yellow. Nope, that was just some guy in a bright yellow shirt. _Darn_, Unfezant thought she almost had him there. Always being this high up in the sky felt like she's free, it's always good to be out of the Poké ball once in a while. Of course, Ash kept her in her Poké ball, like all of the other Pokémon he has on his person. She never thought much of it, since it keeps the Pokémon out of harm's way. Though it didn't feel right seeing Pikachu on his shoulder, was Pikachu really Ash's first Pokémon?

_That explains why he keeps him perched on his shoulder or head_, Unfezant thought, _The two had a stronger bond with each other, what do his other Pokémon think?_

She did know that Oshawott is jealous of the relationship, Unfezant wished she saw him knock Pikachu off Ash's shoulder so he can sit on it. Must be hilarious, even when a brawl were to start. Well, that's life.

Unfezant found herself wandering off again, as he gets refocused her eye caught something, _Is that yellow? _She asked herself, _Yes, it is._

Just as Unfezant focused in on it, there was a bright flash of white, and for an instant everything seized up. The next thing she knew she was falling back to Earth. Unfezant tried her best to stabilize her flight, but discovered some of her primary feathers are on fire. With the ground coming in fast, Unfezant quickly looked for a place to land.

There, a rectangular swimming pool. No more than 30 meters across and 15 meters wide, it's the perfect place to crash-land, not to mention extinguish the fires on her feathers. Unfezant quickly steered herself towards the pool, she covered her head with her feathers as he dove straight into the pool. The landing was hard enough to stun her, but thankfully not hard enough to knock her out. She quickly swam back onto the surface and climbed out of the pool, _Well that went well,_ Unfezant thought as she shook off the water out of her feathers, _Might as well dry myself off before I fly back._

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	13. Chapter XIII

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter XIII_

The sun was just beginning to rise when Unfezant returned. Her feathers were covered in soot as other parts were burnt, she shook her head in shame and sat back onto the ground. Ash understood what she meant, "Okay, thanks for all the help. You did your best."

Ash pulled out her Poké ball and aimed it at Unfezant, "Unfezant, return."

The Poké ball fired its return beam at Unfezant, she turned into pure energy and returned to her Poké ball. Ash pocketed the Poké ball and turned to face several squad cars whose flashing lights were giving him a headache, Kissinger's co-workers and friends looked around the vicinity and interviewed the neighbors to see if they had anything. Mark sat on the doorstep of his home, not wanting to be bothered. His Dad stood by and spoke to his boss, sleep deprived and angry, Kissinger couldn't control his emotions.

"He came right into my house through a hole in the wall and took him," he said, his voice close to break glass, "Tesla just shot right past me, didn't stop or anything! He knew what he was doing, it was all planned. That hole might had been there for quite a while, which should explain the drafts in the kitchen."

"Do you think this is a retaliation against the police raid?" Kelly asked.

"No," said Kissinger, his voice more calmer now, "He wouldn't know about it until morning. I'm not sure about his assets, but we do know he won't be returning to that forest anytime soon."

"And he'll be having a hard time feeding himself, the sanitation workers are already on the move and are cleaning up the trash more efficiently and more faster than before."

Kissinger raised his voice again, "Kelly, he's got my son's Pokémon. A member of _my _family. We got to track him down, this has got to stop!"

"We're picking up his trail already," said Kelly, "He's also heavily dependent on the sewers for most of his travels, we're going through the tag records of every manhole in the city to see if they're being messed with. Sure enough, we found unauthorized use of the manholes around this neighborhood and the food market, that could be Tesla's doing."

"Another front to fight him in."

Kelly nodded, "Indeed so."

"That's good news, but we're still running out of time. How long do you think that all of our efforts will affect Tesla?"

"About a week or two, he'll have to quit soon K."

Kissinger glanced at his son, Mark's Plusle and Minun were hugging him tightly as he still struggled to cope with loosing Emolga, "I don't think Emolga has that much time."

Ash remembered something, he learned it from the library as he was researching Tesla. He soon remembered what it was, _Of course!_

He quickly approached the two officers and introduced himself to Kelly, "Hello, sir. I'm Ash Ketchum."

"I've heard about you," said Kelly as he shook his hand, "You're the one with a Pikachu."

"That Pikachu was also kidnapped by Tesla," Ash explained, "A few hours before Emolga. Among all the things I've seen in the main land, this situation is completely original. But I took the time and researched Tesla's past, I may had found a single weapon that might strike him down."

"Which is?"

"His trainer's will."

"Irvin's will?" asked Kissinger.

"Yes," said Ash, "I've read through a digital copy of the will in the Faraday City Library, it's both touching and memorizing. The will had never been announced because it's for Tesla, let alone read during Irvin's funeral. If we were to read the will to Tesla once we found him, he may surrender from a buildup of grief."

"I never thought of that before," said Kissinger, "We just read it to him, just like that?"

Ash turned to Kissinger, "It needs to be the original copy, and only one person in the world has that copy. Your father, Matt."

Kissinger didn't respond right away, "I'll go over to his house and ask him about it. If all this fails, then hitting Tesla with the last words of his Pokémon trainer would definitely want him to surrender."

"Once we get the letter," said Kelly, "How are we going to meet up with Tesla?"

Ash placed his hand on Kelly's shoulder, "Leave that to me."

**. . .**

Pikachu stirred at the sound of loud squealing, he opened his eyes and discovered it's now morning. As he sat up, his eyes shot wide open as Tesla came in with an Emolga. The Emolga's hands and feet were bound together with flexicuffs, Tesla had a good grip on him by the back of his neck, almost dragging him as he carried Emolga into the base. There were tears in his eyes, the poor thing was terrified, "Emolga! Emolga!"

"Shut your trapper boy," warned Tesla, "You know what? Screw you!"

Tesla shoved Emolga hard onto the ground where Pikachu got a good look at his back, _Brown fur_, he thought, _This Emolga had brown fur on his back... Wait a sec, this is Mark's Emolga!_

"Pikachu?" he asked Tesla to confirm his suspicion.

"The one and only crybaby on this freaking island," groaned Tesla as he kicked Emolga in the rear, "He just wouldn't shut up."

Emolga's eyes were now raining tears like crazy, he covered his head to shield himself from any more of Tesla's blows, "Emolga!" he sobbed, "Emolga-ahh!"

The old Pikachu pressed his head against the dirt wall and covered his ears before groaning loudly. After just a few seconds, Tesla turned around and grabbed Emolga by the throat. He quickly stopped crying as Tesla clamped down hard on his airway, "I don't," Tesla smashed Emolga's back against the wall, "Wanna hurt you!"

He dropped him on his side and stepped back, Emolga coughed loudly awhile trying to get in fresh oxygen into his lungs. His crying stopped, but not the tears. Tesla stared at him with frustration, but not with anger. He sat back on a small stool and stared at Emolga for a few minutes, then his expression changed, "I'm sorry boy," he said in a calm voice, "I'm just not in the mood right now."

A tear streaked down Emolga's face as he managed to look at him, "Emo?" he whimpered, asking him why he snatched him from Mark.

"I believe you know the answer to that, youngling."

Emolga nodded his head, "Emo."

"Pikachu!" Pikachu insisted Tesla to leave Emolga alone.

"All I did was carry him over here," said Tesla, "I didn't mean any harm."

"Pikachu," Pikachu said this isn't right, "Pika Pika!"

Tesla raised an eyebrow, "I've been in this situation for 20 years, you don't understand what I have to do to _not_ end up in police custody. It figures that they had you under their spell, and _that's _not right at all."

"Pika?" Pikachu asked what he was talking about.

"Simply to put that there's... oppression, seen all over the world. We see it everyday, yet we don't think about it. We, as Pokémon, don't think about our place in the world."

"P?"

Tesla approached Pikachu and jabbed a finger at his chest, "Do you like being in a Poké ball?"

Pikachu shook his head, "Pikachu."

"Do you think some Pokémon in the captivity of humans have a choice?"

Pikachu didn't respond right away, "Pika?"

"Maybe? You think that they _maybe _have a choice? Not really Pikachu, you're just one of a selected group of Pokémon that get to be free and experience the world. Most Pokémon a trainer ever has with them get contain in these Poké balls. They're _treated _as luggage most of the time!"

Pikachu gripped the bars in anger, "Pikachu!"

"Just look at yourself, you became mad without 2nd thoughts. Is that how they trained you? That's how they trained me, look how that lead me?"

Most of Pikachu's energy had returned, he tried to use Thunderbolt, but quickly got a blast of electricity from Tesla, he shot back and hit his head against the cage bars before collapsing on his rear end, "See how easy that was," said Tesla, "You tried to attack me and I defended myself, that's what I've been doing. Trainers and cops are coming after me ever since Irvin died, just because of how famous I was during those major Pokémon Leagues and battles. Those trainers want to own me, those cops want me for attacking those trainers. I wanted to be left alone, but..."

Tesla paused for a moment, he looked at Emolga for a brief second before returning his attention to Pikachu, "No, I don't get a choice. They're going to bottle me up in a ball and I wound up being given to a trainer who is either new or had a lot of experience in Pokémon training. Or maybe they're going to send me to a Pokémon prison, if such a place ever exist. All that you heard about me, all those Pokémon matches, that's a life I wanna put to rest. I wanna move on and start a new one, just to enjoy this world and not battle for the amusement of humankind."

Pikachu didn't know what to make of Tesla's human words, he's beginning to figure out why he's doing all _this_, "I know some things about you Pikachu, same place where you and your trainer got the information from me. You didn't like Ash at first when you met him, do you?"

Pikachu closed his eyes and nodded, "Pika."

"You ever thought why?"

He shook his head, "Pika."

"Mankind is the dominant species of the planet, and that species controls Pokémon for good and evil intentions. Sure we may be friends and we may work together, but the system will always be there, just sugar-coated with friendship and love. Hiding it for what it really is, even if it doesn't hurt."

That explained a lot, Pikachu didn't know what to do now. Tesla just told him why he fight, why he's an outlaw, and why he just kidnapped Emolga, Raichu, and him. There was no way to argue with him, now the only question is what does he have in store for him?

"Pikachu," he asked Tesla, "Pika Pika?"

"Your trainer and his dumb buddies forced my hand," said Tesla, "Normally trainers will simply go running back home with their tails between their legs, or simply drops where they stand. But your trainer, Ash Ketchum, showed he's willing to press on. He's not going to quit, but once he knows what cause he's really fighting..."

He paused and looked at Emolga again, who was resting now, "Things will uncoil in his head that are not meant to be uncoiled."

Tesla sat Emolga up and placed his hands on the Pokémon's cheeks, having him look straight at him, "Sorry for bashing your skull open a few days ago Emolga, I didn't mean to hit you that hard."

"Emolga." Emolga muttered, "Emo? Emo!?"

"Did you hear a word I said?" Tesla asked in disbelief.

Emolga shook his head, "Emolga." Clearly he wasn't paying attention.

"Err!" Tesla glanced back at Pikachu, "How much did you have to put up with him?"

"Pikachu." Pikachu said a few times.

"I don't think this Emolga have much brains, let alone common sense."

Emolga showed a guilty smile, "Emolga."

That's when Tesla saw something unusual, "Emolga, did Mark say you're a boy?"

"Emolga." he nodded.

"Hmm..."

Tesla gripped on Emolga's face and looked hard into his eyes, the flying-squirrel Pokémon tried to resist a little bit but gave in a bit early. After a moment, Tesla slammed him into the wall again, this time in disbelief, "You're dumber than a bag of hammers!"

_Oh this is not good. _Pikachu thought, feeling his heart starting to ache from Emolga's suffering.

The old Pikachu picked Emolga up by the shoulders and opened the wooden locker, then shoved him inside. Tesla slammed and locked the door shut as Emolga started to scream again, this time the noise was mostly muffled, "Guess I have something to do for you after all this is over," Tesla said as he sat back down on his footstool, "I can't believe Mark's that stupid."

"Pika?" Pikachu asked Tesla what he found.

"Don't ask Pikachu, this isn't a good time."

"Emolga," Emolga screamed for Tesla to let him out, "Emolga! Emolga! Emolga!"

"This is one very sensitive Pokémon," commented Tesla, "Fill in tubby with what just happened when he wakes up, I'll see if I can get anything for breakfast."

"Pikachu?" Pikachu asked what he's getting for food.

"Remember when we first met, that's where I'm going. Hopefully they have something better than rotten apples," Tesla suddenly winked, "And ketchup."

Tesla turned and headed out the cave entrance, leaving Pikachu alone again, _Does this explain how the world works? _Pikachu asked himself as he thought back at Tesla's conversation.

**. . .**

The sun was bright as it was yesterday, Tesla let its rays shine on him for a moment as he breathed in the fresh air. Faraday City always had clean air, even when it was modernize some few decades ago. The world was still here, still turning, with all of its green plants and blue ocean and sky. The only obstacle for him to enjoy the world were the humans and the Pokémon who served them. Maybe he can make some new friends, yet if he could get those kidnapped Pokémon to trust him.

Tesla made his trip to the food market, or at least somewhere near the area. Often the food around here tasted great, even if human mouths had been on it. Sometimes the food was so good that they couldn't finished it, their taste buds too overwhelmed with flavor. Or maybe they're just watching their weight, Tesla couldn't tell for sure. He got up on a tree that overlooked the food market and oversea the people doing their rounds. The smell was enough to make his body feel young again, Tesla licked his lips as he eyed one of the many waste bins in the area.

_Well_, he thought, _Here it goes._

He climbed down the tree and sneaked across a street before taking cover behind some of the market stalls, Tesla used his nose and searched the place for a good source of nutrition. But for some reason he wasn't smelling anything in the waste bin's direction. There was one hidden from everybody, which is a good place to get a meal while still being covert. Tesla climbed up onto the pin and looked inside, _Empty_, he thought in disappointed, _Smells like they cleaned it too._

It was the same story for the other waste bins, empty with no food or half-drunk water bottles. Tesla was getting disappointed, it probably wasn't his lucky day. After checking all the usual spots and still finding no food, he wondered where was all the scraps. He got his answer when he saw a bond fire where the humans were throwing out their food scraps into. Maybe that was where all the sweet smells was coming from.

Since the bond fire was smack dab in the middle of all pedestrian traffic in the area, there was no way for Tesla to salvage a scrap of food without getting caught, or burned. As he walked away, his belly let out a agonizing growl. The feeling was worse than the sound, _Guess I have to go hungry today_, thought Tesla as he rubbed it, _But there are always other areas_.

He left the food market and went through downtown Faraday City, every dumpster and trash bin that's not in the sight of humans were completely devoid of food or anything that might have food on them. It became more insulting to see those bond fires with the food scraps disintegrating in its embers all over the place, Tesla tried to figure out what was going on but he was too focused on trying to eat than anything else. He head over to the back alleys and searched the recently dumped trash for any food. All he managed to get was a half-eaten banana. He took a bite and quickly spat it out, it tasted horrible.

_Something's going on_, Tesla thought, _Everybody's destroying their food scraps. Maybe they have food in the suburbs, humans love to garden_.

Tesla head over to a nearby manhole and opened it up, then slid the cover back on. He traveled down the sewers and made his way to the suburbs with ease. Even if the smell was that overwhelming, Tesla had smelled raw human waste so much that it he didn't even noticed it. When he reached the suburbs he climbed up a ladder to open up a manhole, only to discover that it was welded shut.

_Check the next one_. Tesla told himself as he let out an audible groan.

He managed to find a manhole than opened up, as he climbed out of it he noticed something on the side of the manhole's rim. It looked like a white metal peg, similar to the small security magnets in packages but much larger and thicker. Tesla ran his finger across it and felt his finger tingle before he even touched it, he knew what that meant, _Sensor!_

Tesla used all of his strength and slid the heavy cover back on before bolting down the street. After turning a few blocks, Tesla slowed down and climbed over some fences. He knew there was a garden somewhere, there should be one around this area. Tesla peaked through a hole in the wooden fence and saw a relatively old human being ripping out his own garden, all of his fruits and vegetables were being harvested prematurely and tossed into a burning fire. Tesla's heart sank, why would he do that?

"Damn government telling me not to grow food in my garden," the man grumbled under his breath as he tossed aside his precious vegetables, "Damn these changes to city policies, might as well move into the country side in the next few months if this keeps up."

_Wait_, Tesla thought, _City government?_

Tesla left the area while pondering that thought, so this was a direct order from the city. Why? Just as he neared his forest, he got his answer when he saw the place crawling with police officers and squad cars. Tesla sat down and watched the cops wonder around his home, the private sanctuary he had been defending for two decades. To the looks of the smoke rising out of the canopy, it looks like the safe zone was breached. Well, it was already compromised.

_Seemed that they figured it out_, thought Tesla, _Good thing I wasn't there last night. The rules had changed, might as well change my tactics then._

He stood up on his hind legs and took a deep breath, then breathed out, _How am I going __to work this out?_

Police sirens started blaring near the area where Tesla came, must be that sensor that tipped the cops off, _Looks like it's time for me to go_, _guess I must plan a new entry and exit. Well, I have time._

Tesla took off and dove into the bushes, then made his way out of the neighborhood as a couple dozen cop cars came rolling in, probably looking for him.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	14. Chapter XIV

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter XIV_

Police activity reduced somewhat around the Kissinger Household, most of the street cops had left as the forensic team stepped in to take care of the minor details. The team of 10 split themselves in two groups, one examined the hole in the outside wall as the other examined the 2nd floor for any clues. The team managed to recover fragments of the flash-bang grenade Tesla used in Mark's bed, along with some fur samples recovered from the hole. The team searched the bathroom and recovered the bloodstained bandages and the 6mm bullet from the trash can. All the evidence were zipped in separate sterile bags and quickly sent to the forensic lab at the FCPD HQ.

Scientists analyzed the bloodstains on the dirty bandages and recovered some DNA samples, they ran the samples through the database and searched millions of people and Pokémon for a match or similarities. They got a match when Tesla's picture popped up on the screen. The DNA in the yellow fur also matched the ones in the blood samples. All this confirmed Tesla had invaded the house, which changed the angle on how the police approached the case.

Officer Kissinger and his son were interviewed separately at the police station. Mark explained that he had a search party running hours before the police raid, and he admit in shooting Tesla with a varmint rifle. Kissinger explained what he know, even told the investigators about his son's role in all this. He was still reeling from the fact that he's now a victim in his own case, with his son getting the worse of it all. Ash was later interviewed, confirming Mark and Kissinger's stories. He even explained the plan on trapping Tesla.

The mayor soon learned of Kissinger's mishap and the failure of the raid, instead of raising the bounty to 1 million pokédollars as he promised, he raised it to 5 million pokédollars. He ordered a high class forensic team to investigate Tesla's own home, the team went into the forest and began to carefully scour the ground and trees, wearing bombs suits.

They all found how desperate Tesla was in fighting back, they had uncovered 78 pit falls, 93 spike traps, 20 trip wires, and 56 crude IEDs (Improvised Explosive Device). They found at least 20 containers filled with fresh water and several more containers containing bio-diesel that went to the generators, they determined that it all came from the food market which is the same place where Tesla goes to eat when he's hungry. Now that part of the city had been clamped down, everyone wondered what stunt Tesla would try to pull to get his dietary needs.

**. . .**

Ash walked along with Mark down the suburban road, Plusle and Minun sat on Mark's shoulders as he held his head down, "Looks like we're close in getting Tesla," said Ash, "We might get our Pokémon back."

"Hopefully alive," said Mark nonchalantly, "I got a feeling we missed something."

"What did we missed?"

"I don't know, let's go to the library and review on what we know. Maybe there's something in the archives that we can use, a clue or perhaps another potential weapon."

"Okay, let's go then."

Mark and Ash made a turn and head straight for the library, then Mark changed the subject, "You tried to stop me from shooting, why is that?"

"I was afraid you're going to shoot my Pikachu instead, he's awfully close chasing him."

"I knew who I was aiming for, Tesla's the slightly larger Pikachu if you hadn't noticed. Not to mention those goggles of his."

"That explains a lot."

"Had I aimed a little bit to the left or right, I would have shot him dead. Emolga and Pikachu might be still with us and Tesla would join his long gone trainer. He might be waiting to die Ash, he's like, really old. You saw how he didn't react to his gunshot wound, or maybe it was a delayed reaction. Just no telling for sure."

"He used your First Aid Kit," said Ash, "The forensic team found a used makeshift bandage and the 6mm bullet you shot him with, how well does Tesla know your home?"

Mark sighed, "Fairly well, it seemed. He had been there before I was born."

The group soon approached the library and walked inside, when they got a seat at a computer Plusle and Minun jumped off of Mark's shoulders and went exploring the library. He let them do their own thing as Ash sat down with him, "Plusle and Minun are quiet." noted Ash.

"I'm considering giving them away," said Mark, "They're so quiet that I forgotten that they're even there. Can't miss Emolga when he's in the room though, he stands out quite well."

Mark typed in Irvin's full name into the search engine of the library's website and pulled up several pictures of him and Tesla, they clicked on several files and examined through the files. They only found what they already know, nothing else. Ash pointed out the files he first found out about Tesla and other information about him, Mark didn't seemed to notice anything interesting.

"Is there anything in here that might say something about Tesla?" asked Ash.

"I don't know but," he stopped mid-sentence, "Hold on, I think I found something."

Mark clicked on a high-quality picture of a much older Irvin Westinghouse with Tesla perched on his shoulders, the picture was zoomed in and showed them sitting on a park bench awhile posing for the camera. Ash saw how old Irvin really was, his full head of hair was whiter than snow as his face showed a lack of elasticity. Tesla however appeared like any other Pikachu, he "somewhat" smiled at the camera as he sat beside Irvin. Like most photos, he appeared serious but not interested.

"Look here," Mark point at Irvin's right hand with his finger, "Check that out."

It was Irvin's cybernetic arm, Ash noticed that around his first trip to the library. "There's scars on his right arm near his cybernetic attachment, those are burns but they didn't appear to come from fire or hot water."

Ash now saw it, right at the point where Irvin's real arm meets his cybernetic hand there were noticeable scars. They look like the remains of really bad burns, it must had been gruesome when he first received them. Ash then realized that the official report said he lost his hand in a project, but...

"What are you suggesting?"

"Those aren't burns from a fire, the scar pattern doesn't match. It looked more like... Like _electric _burns."

**. . .**

When Raichu woke up, he didn't stop talking. Pikachu sat there and listened to him blabber about how his trainer trained him and how he evolved him from his preceding form. It annoyed Pikachu so much that he tried covering his ears, which resulted in Raichu in talking louder. Emolga was also annoyed, even though he was trapped in the wooden box. It gotten to a point where Emolga started crying as he pleaded Raichu to stop, that resulted in Raichu yelling at him for being "close-minded", whatever that means. Pikachu didn't understand the history of the two well, but they seemed frienemies at best.

Pikachu wanted to zap him with the most powerful Thundershock he could unleash, but he knew that may not be a good idea after looking back at the history of battling Raichus. All Pikachu can do was just sit there, far away from Raichu as possible, and plug his ears in an effort to limit Raichu's unintentional psychological warfare. When Raichu finally stopped talking, Pikachu opened his eyes and saw Tesla walking in.

"Tubby giving you problems?" he asked.

Pikachu nodded, "Pikachu."

"Raichu!" screamed Raichu, offended by Tesla's name-calling.

"Hm," said Tesla, "They think that if they unleash a Raichu at me, that might better the odds. Obviously that failed, since tubby's so fat, he fell through the earth!"

Pikachu couldn't bear to laugh as Raichu started pouting, he jumped up and down inside his cage and shouted rapid-fire insults at Tesla, "Raichu! Raichu! Raichu! Raichu! RAICHU!" screamed Raichu.

He managed to jump high enough where he hit his head hard on the top of the cage. Raichu stumbled back and wobbled on his legs for brief second, then collapsed onto the floor and passed out, "I hate Raichus," laughed Tesla, "But I love to see them rage like that."

"Pikachu?" Pikachu asked if Tesla found any food.

Tesla shook his head, "All the usual spots are cleaned out, they're burning their food scraps in the street. We may have to go hungry for the day."

"Emolga!" Emolga screamed inside the wooden box.

"Might as well let the furry critter out," said Tesla, "Give him some air to breathe."

Tesla unlocked and opened the box, causing Emolga to fall out and collapse on the floor. The flexicuffs on his hands and feet were starting to cut into his skin, Pikachu saw Emolga had leftover muck from dried tears all over his face, "Emolga?" the squirrel Pokémon asked if Tesla had any food.

"Freaking humans burned the food scraps," said Tesla, "Might as well go find another source."

Tesla gripped Emolga's jaw and examined his face, and saw several streaks of dried tears down his eyes and cheeks, "You poor thing. Since I'm responsible for you in the meantime, might as well fix you up."

He reached into a box and pulled out a rag and bottled water, Tesla doused the rag with some water and sat the bottle aside. He held up Emolga's head and proceed to wipe the tear streaks off the fur on his face, Emolga showed signs on calming down and soon relaxed. This was a surprise, Pikachu expected to be tortured but that wasn't really happening. It seemed that Tesla had a heart after all.

"During my Pokémon battle days," said Tesla as he carefully cleaned the crust around Emolga's eyes, "My trainer often gave me a bath after a major battle. He always filled the same sky-blue bath tub with hot water and I jump into it like it's a swimming pool. He scrubs me good, especially in those hard to reach places. I sit there and relaxed as he used strawberry-scented shampoo to clean out all the grime I got from those hard battles. Sometimes the water becomes all brown and muddy after I've been in it for 15 minutes."

"Pikachu?" Pikachu asked about his trainer, and what was he like.

"Almost like your trainer," said Tesla, "But more strict and less fun, it was more hard love than anything else. He never took me out to amusement parks, fairs, or any public event. All he does is train me as a Pokémon, or as a human. Those were fun enough, especially when I get to use guns."

Pikachu's ears lowered as he calmed down, "Pikachu." he said softly.

Tesla checked if he missed any more grime on Emolga, he found some more underneath his chin and proceed to remove them, "After the baths, he gave me a really good massage. Being bashed and hammered by Pokémon who are bigger than you requires a special treatment to deal with the after effects, Irvin helped the recovering time with his massage techniques. He targeted the muscles around the center of my back and shoulders, Irvin's quite strong so it was better when he's a little rough in some areas."

"My old age is getting a hold of me, I'm surprised I'm able to last this long with healthy muscles. At least 99% of Pokémon around my age are dead by now, I may be the last of my generation. The later years with Irvin forced the declined of such massages, but Matt seemed to provide me with such treatment. It wasn't exactly the same but it's enjoyable enough, at least those hard days are over now."

Tesla saw that he gotten pretty much all of the brown muck off of Emolga's face, he scratched the Pokémon's head for a bit before tossing the rag aside, "The partnership between a Pokémon and their trainer is vague at best," said Tesla, "Some cases it reaches an unbreakable bond, other times it just doesn't work out. Mutual at best, or so it seemed that way. Though not to many people thought of what would happen if the trainer were to die, what becomes of his or her beloved Pokémon?"

Tesla turned to Pikachu, "Think of all the battles in the many years you had, recall all the blows and attacks your body had to take. When you get older, those past injuries will come back with vengeance. It will be very difficult to treat and life would be unbearable."

"Pika?" Pikachu asked.

"Yes, unbearable. Now Pikachu, I got a medical condition I must tell you about. I have something called osteoarthritis, you know what's that?"

Pikachu shook his head, "Pikachu."

"It's a medical condition where my joints are partially deteriorated, the major areas are around my knees and elbows since we Pikachus put most of our weight on them. Especially when we're running at full speeds for a special attack. At some days, the pain would be so bad that I couldn't move. You remember I unleashed my Quick Attack on you during our first battle?"

Pikachu frowned as he nodded, "Pika." he groaned.

"My joints act up slightly every time I hit you," said Tesla, "Luckily it's still manageable, but if it were any worse than I would've been crippled in pain where I stand."

"Pikachu, Pika Pika P." Pikachu asked why not just give up, he said his friends were just trying to help him.

"Not a good moment Pikachu," said Tesla, "Everybody's just too pumped with adrenaline, I prefer a more passive surrender. Besides, I've been fighting for so long that I didn't know when I should quit. The only problem is that the authorities may take me in, and there goes my freedom. I do not wish to die in a prison cell, yet I do not wish to die awhile being on the run either. I always ask myself why do I have to live like this when it isn't really my fault?"

There was a hint of emotion in his voice there, Pikachu got up on his hind legs and gripped the bars of his cage, "Pikachu?" he asked if he had any other family somewhere.

"I'm a great-grandfather," said Tesla, "I have several children, several more grandsons, and so on. I've been a lot of Pokémon's fathers, the hard part about it was I don't get to see them. Irvin put me in the Breeding Program for a few years in all," he then smiled, "Best days of my life if you know what I mean."

Pikachu smiled as he nodded, "Pika!"

Tesla picked up Emolga and shoved him back into the wooden locker. This time he didn't scream or anything, just sighed as Tesla shuts and locked the door. He then approach Pikachu and looked at him in the eyes, "If you want your freedom," said Tesla, "Then I need you and your friends to guarantee mine. You think you can help me with that?"

Pikachu nodded, "Pikachu."

"Things are a bit too hairy to make any moves yet," said Tesla, "We'll have to wait for things to cool down, in the meantime we'll worry about food."

Pikachu felt his stomach growl, luckily it wasn't loud enough to be audible, "Pika Pika?" Pikachu asked where they can get food.

Tesla walked over to his stool and sat down, "The humans are digging up their gardens, so there's another potential source gone. If we-"

He stopped suddenly and let out a loud yawn, Tesla's eyes drooped as he slouched, "Oh, this old body needs to rest. I don't think I've slept in two days, thanks to you guys."

"Pika." Pikachu apologizes.

"No, it's my fault. Besides, I don't need as much sleep as I used to but my energy isn't as high as it once was," Tesla yawned again, "All those electric attacks from our battles had drained me, I keep forgetting I'm no longer young."

Tesla got up and walked over to a bare spot in the cave, then lay down on his back. Quite unnatural for a Pikachu to lay on his back like that, but Tesla's no ordinary Pikachu, "I wish I have a good bed and pillow," he muttered as he made himself comfortable, "Being in a shelter is good enough for now."

Pikachu watch in disbelief as Tesla started snoring, signaling he just fell fast asleep. He had seen people and Pokémon fall asleep that fast before but this was a bit ridiculous, Pikachu's stuck in a cage with an unconscious Raichu and a sleeping older Pikachu as Emolga's stuck inside a wooden box. On top of it all, they're in a cave in some unknown location on Faraday Island with no one knowing where they were. First things were terrifying, and now everything just got boring. Pikachu felt a mixture of anger and frustration encompass his mind.

"PIKACHU!" he screamed at the top of his lungs, surprisingly not waking up either Tesla or Raichu. He slumped on his rear and sat there, wishing he had something to do to pass the time.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	15. Chapter XV

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter XV_

He found another word on his crosswords puzzle, Matt marked it down and placed a check next to its associated description. Skimming through the columns, he discovered another word and marked that down as well. The Faraday Times were making these crossword puzzles easier, since there isn't a word higher than 10 letters in the past 15 months. No matter, there's always the textbook-size crossword books that they're selling at the nearby supermarket. Those were quite challenging, or at least that was what Matt heard.

Alone in the first story home somewhere in a quiet part of Faraday City, Matt's 20 years of retirement went smoothly so far. He spent a good portion of his life being the assistant of a Pokémon Champion, his whole career and salary literally depended on him. What made it personal was that Irvin Westinghouse was his oldest friend, Matt was really young when he met the guy. He was just walking downtown, heading home after getting some books from the library when the young Irvin sat on the park bench with his new Pikachu.

Just as Matt walked by, Irvin saw how much he was struggling in carrying his books, "You need help there buddy?" he asked in a country accent.

Matt looked up through his glasses and nodded, "Yes, I do."

Irvin got up as his Pikachu climbed on his shoulder, Irvin took half the stack of his books and he followed Matt to home, "What's your name," Irvin asked, "I think I've seen you before."

"Matt Kissinger," said Matt, "I'm the one who made the Tesla coil at school."

"For the science fair?"

"Yeah."

"Damn, them takes great skill."

Somewhere halfway back home, Matt glanced at Irvin's Pikachu. The Pikachu didn't seem to notice him, but the look on its face showed he was moody. Simply just not wanna be bothered with, "Is that your Pikachu?" Matt asked.

The Pikachu looked at Matt with angry eyes, he advert his eyes back where he's going in response, "Sure is," said Irvin, "I just got him recently, we're still trying to get along but things are going fine."

"He doesn't look too happy."

"This Pikachu isn't the most social Pokémon, he didn't seem to have any friends at the Pokémon Lab. He isolated himself from the others most of the time, I just felt sorry enough for him that I just have to pick him and take him under my wing."

"Does he agree?"

"It didn't take much persuading."

When Matt finally got home, he unlocked the door and head inside. The two sat the books down on the kitchen counter and went to the living room to sit down, "Thanks for the help," said Matt, "Who are you exactly?"

"Irvin," said Irvin, "Irvin Westinghouse."

Matt shook his hand, "Thanks for the help, that solves one thing I need to do today."

The Pikachu got down from Irvin's shoulder and jumped on the floor, "Where you're going you little bugger?" he asked.

Pikachu took off towards the front door. He wound up plowing straight into the wall, just missing the door about a meter. When Pikachu fell backwards, he left a cavity the size of his head in the bottom part of his wall. Irvin laughed as he got up to help his Pikachu, that's when Matt saw that something was wrong, "What happened?" he asked.

"He has eye problems," said Irvin, "From what the professor at the Pokémon lab told me, he has a severe case of near-sightedness. This might ruin my chance on becoming a Pokémon trainer if I can't fix Pikachu's problem, I'm already out of fresh ideas."

"Tell you what, in return for helping me with my library books I'll help you fix your Pikachu's vision."

Irvin raised an eyebrow, "You can fix up a thingamabob for Pikachu?"

"Done it before."

"Hm, well. A pair of glasses won't work on Pikachu, you'll need to find an alternative to help with Pikachu's vision."

"There's a start, before I can do anything I'll need to take a quick look at your Pikachu's eyes."

Irvin picked Pikachu up and sat him on the couch, Irvin pulled out a small flashlight and take a careful look at one of Pikachu's eyes. The Pikachu slightly reacted to the bright light, which annoyed him greatly, "I think I see something here," said Matt, "He might have a similar vision as mine, this looks promising."

Matt withdrew the light and sat it aside, "Come back in two weeks and I'll might have the solution till then."

"Sure thing Matt. You hear that Pikachu, you may get perfect vision soon."

The Pokémon wasn't thrilled, but he did showed a small smile, _So he wasn't too hard to please after all. _Matt thought.

After Irvin and his Pokémon left, Matt started working on the project. Irvin said glasses won't work, so why not goggles. They can be strapped onto Pikachu's head and won't fall off during such a heavy battle. Using what little allowance he had, Matt bought a pair of screw-on round lens welding goggles and a few other tools from the hardware store. For days on end, he took one of his spare glasses, removed the lens from the frame, and carefully carved the edges to make them round. He then removed the lens caps off the goggles and removed the existing lens before adding the modified ones, after making sure they're tight on Matt looked through them to see if it had any flaws. He found none.

When Irvin and his Pikachu came back, Matt presented the goggles to Pikachu, "Here," he said, "Try them on."

The Pikachu agreed with resignation, he picked up the goggles and put them on immediately. His eyes went big when he noticed the world became crystal clear, and he let out a big smile, "Look at that," said Irvin, "He likes it!"

Without warning, Irvin gave Matt a big hug, "Thanks Matt, your a lifesaver!"

"Your welcome." said Matt, feeling a bit odd.

"Your free to come by around my house anytime friend."

"Thanks."

"You know what, I wanted to name my Pikachu. I just don't know what I should name him, you have any ideas?"

Matt thought for a moment, then remembered the electrics sparks of his Tesla coil, "Let me show you something."

"Okay."

Matt took Irvin to his garage and pulled off a white sheet off of an object that sat on the workbench. It was Tesla coil, standing no taller than a coffee machine. Matt sat down a piece of aluminum foil and stepped back as he turned on the machine. Bluish-white sparks spewed out of the coil and burrowed themselves in the aluminum foil, they danced around on it as they produce the most amazing, yet dangerous, light show yet.

"This is the Tesla coil that got me 1st price on my science project," said Matt, "What do you think?"

"Amazing," said Irvin, "How much volts does it unleash."

"10,000 volts, if it were as big as a lighthouse I'll get it around 1 million."

"Damn, them smarts."

The Pikachu's jaw dropped as he watched the electricity dance, Matt saw he seemingly found it more awe-inspiring than he did when he fired it up for the first time, "You know Irvin," said Matt, "You should name him Tesla."

"Tesla?" Irvin asked.

"Yes," said Matt, "Named after the Master of Electricity."

"That's a great name."

Irvin looked at his Pikachu, "What do you think about the name Tesla?"

The Pikachu smiled and nodded yes, he surely liked it alright.

"Okay then, Tesla it is!"

"Definitely is," said Matt as he filled in another crossword, "I miss you Irvin, I don't know how you would react to see what your Pikachu had become."

Now in the present day, the electrical wiring of Matt's house had been ripped out and rewired at least three times. The wall cavity Tesla made was still there, virtually untouched since that day. The Tesla coil had since been donated to the Irvin Westinghouse Museum in downtown Faraday City, and was still operating. The history Matt helped make with Irvin is an inspiring tale, still being told throughout the generations. Ever since Irvin died, Matt felt a part himself died with him. His career dependent on Irvin, Matt was still adjusting to the sudden change.

Well, life goes on.

The doorbell rang, Matt wondered who it was. He sat down his crossword puzzle and got up to answer the door, when he opened it he saw his grandson and Ash before him, "Hey grandpa." said Mark.

"Mark," said Matt as the two hugged, "Good to see you."

"Good to see you to grandpa."

"Ash, nice to see you again."

Ash shook his hand, "Hey Matt."

"Where's Pikachu?"

"Tesla kidnapped him."

"My house just became a crime scene," said Mark, "I need to stay at your house for a few days until they wrap up their operation."

Matt's eyes went big, "What happened?"

"Tesla broke into my house and kidnapped Emolga, it was carefully planned. Have you been watching the news?"

"I heard a few things on the TV."

The group headed to the living room where Mark explained what happened in the fast few days, it took him at least 20 minutes, "You surely kicked the hornet's nest this time Mark," said Matt, "I heard about your father's attempt on getting Tesla as well, a close friend of his wound up in the hospital after a trap blew his leg off."

"Tesla's now on _his_ last legs," said Ash, "He's been getting his food from garbage bins ever since day one, now they're being cleared out faster than he could get to them."

"I see, what's the bounty on him now?"

"I heard it's $5 million pokédollars," said Mark, "Grandpa, we can't let the police get a hold of Tesla. You may have something that would defeat Tesla."

Matt raised an eyebrow, "What will that be?"

"Irvin's will."

"You know, Tesla never read it. So you may be on to something there. I have it around here in a safe place, but it's not leaving this house."

"It doesn't have to leave the house, we just need Tesla to read it."

"Well, you must get him here somehow. I don't think Tesla's willing to cooperate though, surely not with me."

"We'll think of something."

"You have any idea where Tesla might show up," asked Ash, "Any places he like to frequent."

"The food court," said Matt, "He also likes to visit his own playgrounds when he was young, especially those areas where Irvin took him out to shoot at various targets. If you really want to lure him in, you're going to need peanut butter."

"Peanut butter?" Mark and Ash asked in unison.

"Tesla loves peanut butter, often eats whole jars full of them. Just hold it up to him and watch as he try to resist, since he'll be hungry he'll give in."

"What kind of brand does Tesla like?" Mark asked.

"Doesn't matter what brand, but he does like extra chunky peanut butter the most."

Mark smiled, "That's always the best."

"Is there anything else he likes?" Ash asked.

"Electricity."

"Well, we know that." said Mark.

"I'm sure you'll figure something out Mark, give me a call when you find something."

"Thanks grandpa."

"Is there a place we can start looking for him?" Ash asked.

"Either downtown Faraday City or in the suburbs, he frequents those areas a lot."

"Okay, thanks for the help grandpa."

"Be careful you two, he may be weakened but he's still tough enough to fight."

**. . .**

"So how are we going to do this?" Mark asked Ash as they walked to a new forest.

"We'll start by the isolated areas first," said Ash, "Your grandpa said that Tesla frequents these areas, I'm amazed he knows the coordinates of these places."

After a quick cab ride to the store and then the outskirts of Faraday City, Mark and Ash found some possible areas where Tesla frequents. There's the large open savanna, full of native grass and a few species of flowers. Nearby was a large blue lake with a barren island in the middle of it, a possible place where Tesla might get his water. Somewhere nearby was a small patch of orange trees, though the fruits they produce don't appear appetizing as they should. Within view, and not too far down the road, was a small abandoned farm that appeared to contain some things Tesla might used to get through the night.

All of these areas might have Tesla wondering around, but it's not likely. But it's the only lead they have, and time may not be on their side. Ash surveyed the area and managed to come up with a plan, "Okay," he said, "For this to work, we're going to need to call out all of our available Pokémon."

"Sure."

As Mark called out his Plusle and Minun, Ash called out his Oshawott, Snivy, Unfezant, Scraggy, and Pignite. When they all came out, Mark was a bit surprised at seeing Pignite, "Where did you get all these Pokémon?" Mark asked.

"Unova region," said Ash, "I recently completed a journey through half of it, I'm just taking a short break for a while."

"Sweet."

Ash turned to his Pokémon, "Okay guys, listen up. You know who we're looking for, Tesla. He has some of our friends, and he's not going to let them go easily. Somewhere around here, Tesla is out foraging for food. The goal is simple, find him and follow him back to his wherever he's hiding in. Whatever you do, do NOT battle him. He's no ordinary Pokémon, he'll knock you out of commission with a single move without much effort. Most of you know this already, I'm afraid to say that it's much worse than it actually is. If he discovers you're nearby, do not chase him or he'll fight you. If you back off, he'll let you pass."

"Oshawott!" said Oshawott as he pump his fist and stamp his feet on the ground.

"You want to know what to do if he attacks?" Ash asked.

Oshawott nodded, "Oshawott!"

"Evade him, just don't fight back just evade him. He might not give you a second chance this time Oshawott, so try not to make him mad."

Oshawott groaned with resignation, "Oshawott."

"Here's the plan, Unfezant will search from above. Me and Mark will take this area, you guys take that area. Plusle and Minun will take the wide open space over there. Now if you encounter Tesla, offer him this to calm him down."

Mark took off his backpack and handed a jar of peanut butter to Snivy, Unfezant, and Plusle, "He likes peanut butter," said Mark, "Just don't eat it okay."

"Snivy." agreed Snivy.

"Plusle." Plusle as well.

"When the sun's about to set, we'll meet back at this spot. Just don't be late, and please be careful."

Unfezant took off into the air as the others went off to their search areas, as Ash watched his Pokémon walked off Mark put his hand on his shoulder, "You're taking a big gamble here Ash," said Mark, "You might lose all of your Pokémon."

"I'll risk it all to get my friend back." said Ash.

"If we turn up nothing today, we'll go back to the drawing board."

"Okay, I hope your plan is better."

"Henry and Carley might get involve, they lost Pokémon too. Remember?"

"I do."

"If my plan fails, we'll just have to leave it all for the police and hope for the best."

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	16. Chapter XVI

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter XVI_

When Mayor Dixon's new policy went into effect that morning, the excuse was a sudden increase of the Pokémon rodent population. The money pumped into the program was higher than the combined budgets of road and utility maintenance. People all over Faraday City quickly complied, since the city was operated by an arguably a semi-authoritarian local government. In the Pre-Tesla years, the number of police officers swayed somewhat around 1,500. Ever since Tesla came around, the number jumped to 5,000. That was more law enforcement officers than any other town, city, and village on Faraday Island put together. Crime quickly shot down to an all-time low, popular and prominent outlaws moved on to greener pastures. Only one outlaw remained, which happened to be the same outlaw who caused the security surge.

The Law Enforcement budget was the highest, toppling over any other budget. Now the Sanitation budget skyrocketed right up to the rear of the former, both budgets had a combined annual amount of one _billion _pokédollars per year. For a city this size, it's just ridiculous, especially when it was for combating a little Pokémon. Savvy citizens knew something was up, a clever journalist from The Faraday Times sneaked into the FCPD and uncovered the true reason of the food scrap burning program. When it leaked out that afternoon, it caused an uproar among the people.

Tesla's popularity is slightly higher than his trainer, due to the fact that he never lost an official Pokémon battle and his spectacular electrical abilities. He inadvertently divided the city into several major groups. Most of the older generation, who had seen Tesla in his glory days in action, rose up and started protesting in support for Tesla. The families of trainers who challenged Tesla and eventually lost call for the government to imprison him, since many of those trainers suffered permanent damage from Tesla's traps and electric attacks. The younger generation, who grew up with the mythical stories of Tesla, simply picked sides. The rest of them make up the bulk of the undecided and neutral. It was the beginning of the Tesla Protests.

Supporters took to the streets and laid out trash cans full of various of foods, opponents do their best to destroy them. Several city counsel members quickly found trash cans, either loaded with fresh or burned food, depending on the allegiance of the person who put them there, trying to sway them to join their cause. The most popular was a sign that showed a badly drawn Pikachu electrocuting a human stick figure, placed in a convenient spot in the middle of Dixon's yard. Another sign posted next to it read, "_Pardon Tesla or Else!"_ That message was more clear than its picture version.

The greatest irony yet was the support from Irvin's friends, family, and former rivals, who wanted Tesla to be pardoned. Saying it was the city counsel's fault and not him for his and his victims suffering. That sparked mixed emotions from both sides, and sure enough these sides started up multiple Pokémon battles in any flat stretch of land possible. These battles were so extreme, each side had 4 or 8 Pokémon battling an equal number of opponents all at once. Many of these battles ended so badly that the Pokémon were taken to the Faraday City Pokémon Hospital, it was so jam-packed with injured Pokémon that some were taken to the roof or on the Pokémon Center's parking lot. Seeing how hopeless the situation was, a group of doctors left the hospital and set up a temporary medical base at the park, which was hosting the majority of these battles. It was quickly overwhelmed, which prompt another medical center nearby, and then another.

The Faraday City school system completely shut down in response to the uprising. Children ranging from 6 to 18, who were told to go home by their superiors, ended up joining the city-wide event, after picking sides the children started battling away. The decision to closed down the schools inadvertently fueled the fires of the Tesla hysteria to a greater level. Before the schools can be reopened, they were quickly taken up by doctors and injured Pokémon.

The sanitation teams began having trouble doing their trash rounds, every single garbage truck received a police escort as Tesla supporters were trying to block their paths. This was bypassed by the Tesla opponents, who gladly gave them their trash. Some of which happened to be the food left out by the supporters. All in all, the trash collection teams met their quota, more or less.

Wanting to end the fiasco, the Chief of the FCPD ordered search teams to go looking for Tesla. These search teams were made up of police officers and volunteers hand-picked on the street. The teams searched the sewers and back alleys of the city for signs of Tesla, more teams fanned out in the neighboring country-side to search for Tesla. The searching went so far that the neighboring towns went on high alert when such a team comes passing by.

The Transportation Department of Faraday City started establishing roadblocks on the roads, leading either in or out of the city. Their purpose is to check for any signs that Tesla would try to sneak out using the help of a supporter, so far they turned up nothing, only getting amped up when they see something yellow in the cars. The city's port found themselves with increased security, SWAT teams were stationed around the port to make sure that Tesla doesn't slip by. A humorous scene occurred when the manager began yelling at the police supervisor for placing the security on his port without his consent, the supervisor said something about personal safety and told him to calm down. It caused the manager to pull out a shoe horn and attacked the supervisor, resulting in the SWAT team to pummel him to the ground and take him into custody.

The situation in Faraday City spread around Faraday Island like wildfire, eventually starting similar protests either for Tesla's freedom or imprisonment. Similar scenes from Faraday City were occurring in the towns, but not in a huge scale. The news on what's happening in Faraday City made it to the main land, where similar cases of massive Pokémon battles and Tesla protests occurred. Mostly around the gyms or towns Irvin Westinghouse visited during his quest to become a Pokémon Champion.

The bubble had grown so huge, it was amazing that rioting and looting hadn't occurred yet. Police were only arresting protestors for small fights and other disobedient, but nothing major. People who were not involved with the Tesla mania were lucky, for now. It might take a single Tesla sighting to burst the bubble, and maybe chaos will surely start.

**. . .**

Cabot watched the entire protests unfolding before him on his TV, Axew was snuggled right beside him as they watch the people and their Pokémon picketed around City Hall and other city-owned places. The trainer couldn't believe his eyes, how can a simple mouse Pokémon like Tesla caused so much chaos. Cabot left Axew on the couch and got on his computer, he did a quick search for Tesla on a search engine and got at least 50 _million _hits.

There was so much about him on, anything. Cabot didn't know where to begin, so he clicked on the Wikipedia article about him and skimmed through it. He discovered he was famous for his powerful electrical attacks and his invincible track record on Pokémon battling. As well as several hobby areas such as gun shooting, electrical engineering, and so-on. According to the Wikipedia article, Tesla tried pretty much about anything, even when he was not under the watchful eye of his trainer.

Whatever the cause, Tesla inspired millions, if not _billions_, into Pokémon battling. For this old Pikachu, he surely influenced the world without being in its face. Now he was almost on every television news network out there, even the channels that were Pokémon oriented. It was all absurd, but Cabot saw an opportunity deep within the madness. He could become rich and famous by participating these battles, he had a Darmanitan, a Gigalith, and a Timburr. All kept at the Pokémon Lab. He hadn't gotten them out in a while, maybe it was now the time to take them out for a much needed adventure.

Cabot shuts off his computer and turned to his Axew, "Hey Axew," said Cabot, "Let's go get our friends and go to Faraday City, what do you say?"

"Axew!" the Axew cheered.

Cabot turned off the TV and grabbed Axew's hand, the Tusk Pokémon yelped as his trainer pulled him off the couch and out through the apartment door.

**. . .**

Pikachu curled in the blanket and managed to get himself more comfortable, however he can't sleep. Somehow, not being with Ash altogether hurts more than being imprisoned in a cave with him, and listening to the snores of one of his own kind didn't help either. Each of every Tesla's snore pierced Pikachu's ears, the walls of the cave sort of helped when it comes to absorbing most of the sound. Since he's in a close proximity with Tesla, the mud walls have little effect.

The mouse Pokémon stood up on his hind legs and stretched his limbs, his muscles were beginning to sore from disuse. Pikachu loosened up his joints and sat back, then stared at his older counterpart as he snored away. Just when Pikachu thought he was going to go nuts again, his stomach knotted up before letting out the loudest growl possible his belly could ever make. Embarrassed and upset, Pikachu covered up his belly with his hands and thought about getting good Pokémon food. He had been hungry like this before, but not _this _bad.

The growl caused Tesla to stir, he sat up and let out a loud yawn, "Whoa, what just happened?" he asked Pikachu.

"Pika." Pikachu said absolutely nothing.

"Well then," said Tesla, "Might as well put this TV to good use."

Tesla turned on the TV and the news quickly popped up, it showed humans protesting on an open grass field as the title, DIVIDED _FARADAY CITY PROTEST FOR OR AGAINST TESLA'S PARDON, _takes up the bottom part of the screen. The camera shifted around and captured major Pokémon battles as they happen as the news anchor to CNN news made quick work in covering the scene, "We're here in Faraday City Park where we are witnessing major Pokémon battles as they happened. What you are seeing in front of you are Pokémon battles consisting of 5 to 8 Pokémon teams, surrounded by a crowd of maybe a few hundred people. Over in the far back is the medical hospital for the Pokémon who are injured during these major battles, we don't understand what's why this is happening but-"

The news anchor stopped as an older human walked passed her, she quickly stopped the man and held the microphone near his mouth, "Why are people battling their Pokémon in such major matches, do you know?"

"They wanna bring attention to Tesla's ordeal," said the man, "He's been hunted by the police for 20 years for no reason. To show how hard Tesla's life had been, these Pokémon matches are set up to show how he struggles everyday."

"Pokémon are getting injured in these battles, why are people so eager to be doing this to them?"

"All of us here are Westinghouse fans, I grew up watching Irvin battle other trainers in various gyms in the main land. But every time his signature Pikachu, Tesla, comes onto the scene, people go ecstatic because Tesla never looses a Pokémon battle and he always puts on a good show for it. It was always interesting to see him defy the odds, even when he appears to be close to defeat."

"Never lost a battle," said Tesla as he stares at the TV screen, "But never won a war. This proves my point about Pokémon battles and entertainment, can you imagine being in that chaos Pikachu?"

Pikachu sighed, "Pikachu." he shook his head.

"They don't have to fight for me, I just wanna retire. This shouldn't be a big deal about it, does people understand that I've passed my prime?"

"Pika," Pikachu said about him defeating all of his friends with ease, "Pika Pika, P. Pika."

Tesla glared at Pikachu, his younger counterpart gulped in response, "That's just self-defense, I have a reason to do all that. I just don't wanna battle for people's entertainment anymore. That's just what Irvin wanted from me, not what I wanted. Thankfully I'm too old for tears. I'm just... tired of all this."

The old Pikachu laid back on the floor and groaned, "I'm old, my joints are failing, my muscles are getting weak, my chest his hurting, my mind is still okay, but the world just feels so heavy. I just wondered to myself when I will ever sleep in a nice bed again."

"Pika." Pikachu said not to give up hope.

Tesla didn't respond right away, "I don't need hope, I just need patience. It's more-" He quickly sat up and sniffed the air, "Is that peanut butter?"

"Pikachu?" Pikachu asked what he's talking about.

Tesla looked at him in disbelief, "You don't smell it? It's peanut butter! I love peanut butter, and the smell brings back good memories! It's somewhere nearby, just stay here and keep Raichu and Emolga company as I go out and check it out."

"Pikachu Pikachu!" Pikachu insist it could be a trap.

The old Pikachu smirked, "Then I'll dismantle it before I move in."

Tesla got on all fours and ran out of the cave, driven by the smell of his favorite food. It took a short moment for Pikachu to smell it as well. His mouth watered from hunger, he wondered where the smell was coming from.

**. . .**

"Snivy!" screamed Snivy as she chased Scraggy through the forest, their friends struggled to keep up.

"Scraggy!" Scraggy held tight onto the peanut butter jar and his loose pants-like skin, struggling to hold on to both. His face was covered in peanut butter, along with his hands and his elastic skin.

_I knew I shouldn't have let him hold the peanut butter jar_. Snivy angrily thought as she tried to snatch him up with Vine Whip.

He just wanted to hold the peanut butter jar, it made sense at the time since he can store some things in his pouch. Snivy eventually agreed with his persistent pleading and gave him the peanut butter jar, things went smoothly for a few minutes until she noticed Scraggy was eating the peanut butter. Wanting to keep with Ash's word, Snivy asked for the peanut butter back. Scraggy took off, and things went off track faster than she could even put them back on.

"Oshawott!" Snivy can hear Oshawott screamed to wait up. She ignored him, having no time to deal with them right now.

"Pignite!" screamed Pignite as he struggled to keep up as well, his feet weren't as fast as they once were.

"Snivy Sniv Snivy!" Snivy barked at Scraggy for his arrogance, saying that he's going to alert Tesla to their presence.

"Scrag!" Scraggy insisted he might know long before hand.

With steam coming out of her ears, Snivy charged forward. Scraggy was having a hard time keeping distance from her, all thanks to that pants-skin something. It was amazing that he ever did battle without letting his skin get in the way, but it sure did slowed him down a bit. Just as Snivy got close enough, she unleashed her Vine Whip at him. Just before she could get him however, Snivy ran into a broken branch from a native tree and tripped. She tumbled a few times before collapsing face first on the ground.

"Snivy." she grumbled as she pulled herself back on her feet.

Snivy expected her friends would come to her aide, being the kind little fellows they were. But they didn't, Snivy turned around and saw they were nowhere in sight. Odd, they were just right behind her a minute ago.

"Snivy!" she called out for them, keeping her cool in the process, "Sniv! Sniv!"

No response.

_Now where have they gone to? _Snivy thought as a lobe sprained from rage.

Thanks to Scraggy, she lost track on where they're going. Now the group was probably stumbling around, trying to regain their bearings in an effort to focus back on the task. Snivy looked up at the sky, the sun hovered somewhere around the high point of the sky, signaling it was somewhat noon. Well, there was a long way to go before sunset. Snivy brushed herself off and sat down to think, "Snivy." she muttered to herself, wondering how to approach this problem.

_How about a tree_, she thought, _Why not just climb up a simple tree_.

Snivy got up and approach the tallest tree closest to her, she frowned as she stared at it for a moment. It seemed sturdy enough, might as well attempt a climb. Snivy grabbed onto the trunk and climbed up the bark until she got to the branches, then climbed the branches until she made it as high as the tree can allow. She popped her head over the canopy and looked around. Faraday City was somewhere to the North, everywhere else was just a sea of trees. Snivy could see the abandoned farm, just barely, through the trees. Its unnatural shape gave it away from the background.

The group was heading in that direction before Scraggy made off with the peanut butter. Snivy didn't bother looking around for her friends, they might wound up at the farm eventually. Hopefully they weren't _that_ stupid. Snivy climbed down the tree and headed towards the farm, using the sun as a reference point.

For the first time in a while, Snivy was alone, and glad to be alone. She struggled to handle the immaturity of Ash's other Pokémon, since they drive her nuts at times. Thankfully she didn't have to be around Iris' Emolga, however that was only temporary. Ash would soon rejoin them, and resumed the Unova journey. But at least she got a moment to be alone, just no nonsense for a few minutes or hours. She know where to meet back up with the group once sunset comes, Snivy felt confident enough that this might be a time to just kick back and enjoy the silence.

_No worry, no responsibility_, she thought as the abandoned farm came closer, _But only for a short while. Might as well enjoy it as it lasts_.

Once she got to what was left of the front gate of the barn, Snivy looked around at her surroundings. The farm seemed abandoned for years, maybe decades. Wooden boards covered the windows of the one-story farmhouse, its sides and roof had deteriorated and close to falling apart. The barn didn't fair as well either, the roof had caved in and now rest at the bottom. Various weeds and tall grass grew over what was once a garden and perfectly groomed yard, trying to remove what man had created. The only thing that doesn't seem too deteriorated was the meter high electric fence, though the support posts were horribly rotted, the wires themselves withstand the test of time, so far.

Snivy held out a finger and dragged it across the wire, she didn't get shocked, nor did she felt any signs of rust. She used her thumb and rubbed off the grime she picked up off her finger before returning focus to her objective. She approached the farmhouse's front door, unlike the windows it wasn't boarded up. Snivy tried turning the door knob, it was locked. After making sure no one was looking, Snivy gave the door a hard kick with her foot. The door stood no chance as it broke from its frame and fell flat on the floor, stirring up some dust in the process.

_Whoops. _Snivy nonchalantly thought.

When she stepped inside, she saw the dry walls and original flooring were ripped out. All that was left were exposed wood and wooden platforms that made up the skeleton of the building, Snivy looked up and actually saw the bottom of the roof. There were coin-sized holes through it in a Swiss cheese fashion, that explains most of the dirt all over the wooden beams that once made up the ceiling.

_Nothing here_, Snivy thought as she let out a sigh, _Might as well wait for the others to arrive_.

Just as Snivy stepped back outside, she heard something stir in the bushes. She froze and listened, nothing. Must be the wind since it's starting to pick up again, Snivy managed to find a comfortable spot to sit down on: a rock. Once there, she looked out where she came and waited for her friends to arrive.

"A bit under the weather, Snivy," said a strong, but slightly hoarse voice, "Your friends are giving you trouble or what?"

Snivy turned around and saw a Pikachu, sitting on the roof of the farmhouse. At first she thought it was Ash's Pikachu until she saw the goggles, she immediately knew who she was looking at, "Sniv!" she growled at him

"I'll take that as a yes," said Tesla, "Just lower the amperage a little and think for a sec, what _was_ on your mind?"

"Sniv Snivy Sniv Sniv Snivy." she grumbled about her friends, on how immature and incompetent they are.

"That's what happens when they're kept inside a Poké ball for a long period of time, they get bored and in need for some fun. They're hard to manage, but that's normal. But it's a disaster if their trainer's much worse than the Pokémon themselves, do you agree?"

Snivy nodded her head as she turned away, "Snivy."

"Looks like we have something in common, I can't stand such upstarts either. They just make me so mad that I blast them with my Thunderbolt, then watch them fly into the air until they crash-landed on the ground like a falling bird. Ah, so satisfying to know that you done something to solve such an annoying problem."

"Sniv." Snivy agreed as she stared at one of the wooden posts of the electric fence.

They cease conversation for a full minute, then Tesla broke the silence, "You're just going to sit there or something?"

"Sniv." Snivy said yes.

"You're not going to ask me where's Ash's Pikachu or anything?"

Snivy quickly remembered Tesla shocking her with his Thunderbolt, she still had problems remembering that moment but the act itself was clear in her mind. It unearthed the memory and brought it to the front part of her mind, the anger along with it. Snivy shot around and whipped her Vine Whip on Tesla, he jumped in time as the vines slashed against the farmhouse. The walls quickly fell apart from the sudden nudge, turning the farmhouse into a collection of ruined pile of wood.

Before she knew it, Tesla was right on top of her. He pinned her to the ground with sheer strength, Snivy struggled as hard as she can but it was fruitless. She brought her two vines over Tesla in an attempt to pluck him off of her, but just as they closed in Tesla grabbed onto the vines and brought it under his control. Snivy's eyes went big as Tesla quickly wrapped her vines around her body, trapping her arms in the process. It was tight, but not too tight to prevent her from breathing.

When Tesla made a knot to complete the wrap, he chuckled, "Betrayed by your own Vine Whip, no one will ever think of that ever happening!"

Snivy's jaw dropped, couldn't believe how fast it took for Tesla to capture her. She held her head down as Tesla pulled a opaque cloth bag over it, then hoist her on to his shoulder. It took Ash days for him to capture her, it only took Tesla 5 simple minutes. Clearly this Pikachu was skilled, intelligent, and smart enough to use her own emotions against her. Now he just collected Snivy as a new hostage, and she had no idea what to do.

Recalling the sheer power of his Thunderbolt, Snivy decided to follow whatever instruction Tesla had in store for her. Thankfully she wasn't like the others, who would scream as loud as possible in response for such terror. She might get knocked out because of it, and loosing track of time was the worse that could ever happen to her on this situation "Look on the bright side." said Tesla.

"Sniv?" she grudgingly asked.

"You get to see your missing friend, Pikachu."

_That isn't the point_. Snivy thought, but kept her mouth shut.

Her heart sank to her stomach as Tesla carried her off, into whatever shelter he built before hand. She couldn't imagine how her friends would react, not that she cared in all. Snivy had a job to do, and she blew it. This was one of the reasons why she left her previous trainer in the first place.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	17. Chapter XVII

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter XVII_

"I kinda wish I brought my rifle." said Mark as he and Ash stopped to rest.

"Why?" Ash asked.

"Security. But I can't bring it, since the police gotten a hold of it. They're going to use it as evidence in court if Tesla ever gets caught. I spend freaking two-_hundred _pokédollars on that gun, I bought it with a discount!"

Ash reached up at the orange tree and plucked an orange off and smelled it, it gave off a horrid odor. He tossed it aside in disgust, "We've searched this place high for any signs of Tesla and we found nothing, was this a waste of time?"

"It's a start." said Mark.

"True, you think we should head back to the rendezvous point and wait for our Pokémon?"

"It's starting to near sunset, so yeah. Let's call it a day, and maybe we can try something new tomorrow."

Ash and Mark walked back to the rendezvous point and waited for their Pokémon to return. Unfezant was already there, the peanut butter jar Mark gave her sat beside her, unopened. She was napping peacefully and soon awoke when the two approached, Unfezant didn't say anything but just sat there. She must had been there for some time now. After a few more minutes, Plusle and Minun returned. Plusle still had his peanut butter jar, also unopened. Mark was pleased they were still able to listen. It took a little longer for Ash's Pokémon to return, when they did Ash knew something was wrong.

First of all, Scraggy's face was covered in peanut butter and the peanut butter jar he's carrying was licked clean. Pignite and Oshawott both had a frown on their face, but there's no way to tell if Scraggy is sad or anything, "Guys," said Ash, "Where's Snivy?"

Oshawott and Pignite turned and glared at Scraggy, who in turn glared at them. He then looked at Ash, obviously shaking with nervousness, "Scraggy Scrag!" he said as he extended his arms out like a prophet, still holding the empty peanut butter jar.

"We gave Snivy the peanut butter jar," said Mark, "And now Scraggy has it, who clearly ate it all. What's your take on this Ash?"

"Hm," said Ash, using a finger to scratch his chin, "Did Snivy got separated from you guys?"

All of his Pokémon nodded yes.

"Was it because of Scraggy."

Oshawott and Pignite nodded as Scraggy held his head down in shame.

"Did she chased him?"

They all nodded yes.

"Take us to the last place you seen her."

The group followed Ash's Pokémon towards the site, when they got there Ash didn't see anything out of the ordinary, "You see anything out of the ordinary?" he asked Mark.

"Nope, where were your Pokémon going to investigate again?"

"The abandoned barn."

"Well let's check there and see if Snivy's there."

The group made the quick walk to the abandoned farm and noticed that the farmhouse was destroyed, it was still standing a few hours ago when they came in, "I got something," Mark pointed a finger, "Look, fresh brown wood recently exposed, proving that it went down recently. But it would take a massive disturbance to bring it down."

"What would that be?" Ash asked.

"I don't know, maybe someone knocked it down. Some of what's left of the roof appeared smashed in, look at the indentation of this crater here."

Ash examined the somewhat intact roof, finding a large dent at the edge of the roof, "Something knocked it down alright," he commented as he turned back to Mark, "Quite recently, too."

Mark didn't say anything right away, his eyes were glued to the ground. Ash wondered what he was seeing, "There's a recent struggle here," said Mark as he got down onto his knees, "Look at the stems of these grass leaves."

Ash followed his finger and noticed the smashed grass in question, it was clearly fresh, "How did you notice these stuff?" asked Ash.

"My Dad's an investigator," said Mark, "I got a few traits from him as a result."

Mark reached down and picked up something, "This stands out from the grass," he held it up for Ash to see, it was a few strands of yellow hair that were barely a centimeter long. Ash was surprised that Mark even noticed that, "I think we have found our culprit."

Ash looked away as a result, trying his best to conceal his emotions. He failed.

**. . .**

Pikachu shot upright as Tesla came back into the cave, this time he wasn't alone, "I didn't find any peanut butter," he said, "But I did found this."

Tesla pulled the black bag off of his newly kidnapped Pokémon's head, it was Snivy, tied up by her own vines. When she saw Pikachu, her eyes lit up, "Snivy!" she called out to him, asking if he's alright."

"Pika." Pikachu nodded.

_Odd_, Pikachu thought, _She's a bit more lively than she normally would_.

"She was easy to get a hold of Pikachu," said Tesla as he sat Snivy on her feet, "I simply asked her about you, that was all it took to bring her down."

"Sniv." she grumbled.

Tesla shoved her towards the small closet, "Hey Emolga, you got a friend here."

He unlocked the door and shoved Snivy in, then shut and relocked the door.

**. . .**

The small space was tall enough to stand, but not wide enough to do anything else. Snivy's tail didn't help things either, she managed to get it into a comfortable position but nothing else. It was dark, almost pitch-black. The only light in the small closet was from the gaps and holes through the door. Eventually her vision started to adjust in a few seconds of being inside the box, which helped quite a bit.

As she get into a position to get comfortable, she felt something pressing against her. Snivy blinked twice and try to make out the warm blob of fur that's taking up space, she stared at it long enough for two eyes and a mouth to form out of the darkness, "Emolga." said the sweet words of the Pokémon.

At first Snivy thought that this was Iris' Emolga, but soon noticed that Emolga's back fur was brown, not grayish-black. This was a different Emolga, yet the personality seemed to be the same. Snivy groaned, this was the last thing she ever wanted, _An Emolga_, she thought, _I just have to get stuck inside a box with no elbow room with an Emolga. Great, just great._

"Emolga?" Emolga asked if she's alright.

Snivy glared at it, "Snivy!" she told Emolga to shut up.

"Emo Emo," Emolga asked again, "Em Emolga?"

"Sniv." Snivy said no.

"Emo-"

"SNIVY!" Snivy once again told Emolga to shut up.

Emolga's face quickly changed from cute to scared, or that's what Snivy can make out in the box. Just as Snivy was going to ask him what's going on, she heard a loud fart. The sound bounced around in the box, causing it to slightly pierce Snivy's ears. A couple seconds later, a putrid smell came to her nose and Emolga let out a guilty grin.

"SNIV!"

**. . .**

Emolga screamed inside the box as Snivy began an angry rant at him, it was so harsh that the box literally shook inside its carved out slot. Tesla stood there, nearly laughing to himself as he watch the wooden locker jolt and bounce, "Having fun in there?" he asked.

Pikachu listened to the screams coming out of the box. Snivy seems to be yelling at Emolga for being an idiot and making her situation even worse, Emolga pleaded he's sorry numerous times. His words did nothing to calm Snivy down, "SNIV SNIV SNIV SNIVY SNIV!" Snivy continued to batter Emolga.

"EMO EMO EMOLGA!" Emolga pleaded sorry, sounding like he was going to cry.

"Are you alright in there guys?" Tesla asked, still trying to hide the smirk on his face.

The wooden locker's door blast open in a fireball, propelling Emolga and Snivy out of the box and on to the floor. Pikachu and Tesla were knocked back by the air pressure, he can feel his eardrums trying to burst as the shockwave blast past him. It bounced off the back of the wall before shooting towards the entrance, kicking up a ton of dust in the process. When the dust finally settled, Pikachu got up and saw Emolga and Snivy laying on the floor in a daze.

As they moaned in pain, Tesla got back onto his feet and brushed himself off, "Among all the things that I've seen," he laughed, "This was the most random yet."

"Emolga." Emolga cried softly as he lay on the floor.

"Snivy." Snivy growled as she tried to get back up.

Tesla poked her and sent a shock through her body, knocking Snivy back to the floor, "Whatever happened in there, I'm making you responsible. Emolga was doing okay on his own."

"Snivy Sniv!" Snivy struggled to break free from her bonds, wanting to free her hands so she could strangle Emolga.

"Emolga!" Emolga squealed as he rushed behind Tesla for protection.

Tesla grabbed her by the forehead and his hand flashed a bright white light, Pikachu quickly shut his eyes from the flash but it still left its mark. When he opened them again, he saw Snivy was knocked out cold, "She's a keeper," chuckled Tesla, "Thankfully I'm too old for women."

Pikachu wanted to banter at Tesla for hurting Snivy, but quickly realized he was defending Emolga from her. As that thought juggled inside his brain, he watched Tesla helped Emolga up and gave him a hug. Mark's Pokémon started crying into his shoulder, completely upset for the gazillion time since he was imprisoned by Tesla, "I'll probably move him in with you," Tesla said to Pikachu, "Keep Snivy in that box for some time, see how she likes it completely alone."

"P Pika." Pikachu asked what was Snivy doing when he found her.

"She was looking for me," said Tesla, "Now her, I mean, your friends, are probably figuring out that I got her by now. It's now night, I suggest you get some rest. Maybe there's going to be some chaos tomorrow."

Tesla put his hand on his chest and clamped down on his fur, resulting in him pulling out a couple dozen strands of yellow fur off his body, "I miss the baths," said Tesla as he dropped the fur onto the floor, "I think I got fleas or something, I saw tiny insect Pokémon the size of a pin head crawling on my arm the other day. No wonder I feel so miserable lately."

Emolga shot back, pressing his back into the mud wall in response, "Emolga!" he asked not to give him fleas.

Tesla glared at him and said in a harsh tone, "Maybe I got it from you, little squirt. Cause I sure didn't have fleas before."

He stood there for a moment before placing his hands on his temples, Tesla hold it there for a moment before relaxing his arms, "How did I got myself into this mess in the first place?" he asked the cave ceiling.

_How long can Tesla hold himself together? _Pikachu thought as he looked away.

He turned his attention to Raichu, who was sitting back against the cage bars sleeping. So far he kept his cool, even after Tesla's teasing. Though Pikachu had to admit, that was quite funny the way he reacted to his insults.

"Okay Snivy," grumbled Tesla as he picked her up, "Back to the box you go."

Tesla shoved Snivy back inside the wooden locker and shut the door, "Amazing that the latch and lock didn't break through that chaos," he said as he got out a screwdriver and tightened the lock, "That's just ridiculous, you think?"

"P." said Pikachu.

**. . .**

"Damn," said Kelly as he sat in the front passenger seat of Kissinger's squad car, "Look at all of those people K."

"I can't believe my family ever associated itself with Irvin." grumbled Kissinger as he drove down the street, honking his horn to alert people to move to the already packed sidewalk.

It's already night and the protests are still going on. People were packed onto the sidewalks as they hold up a sign to their faction, either a "supporter" or an "opponent". The trip from City Hall normally takes around 20 minutes, but with the crowds, he wasn't even halfway back to his designated police station yet. Kissinger seen many of the faces of protestors as they seemingly held their signs at him, some are determined for their cause as others were just flat out angry. For a cop that's just passing by, there's no telling where trouble will spark.

He had his Mossberg-500 shotgun displayed on the plexiglass screen that splits the cab from front and back, fully loaded with slug rounds. Kissinger never used it outside the firing range, never even _used _it while he's on duty. He also had an AR-15 mounted under the trunk of his squad car, also fully loaded and never used on duty. FCPD requires such weapons to be in his possession. It was so nonsensical to Kissinger at first, since Faraday City never had such crimes that require such weaponry. That opinion began to change when the massive protest in the Tesla dispute took place.

Everywhere Kissinger look, he saw potential danger. A lot of sudden and suspicious moves were going on all around him, and it toyed with his mind. He couldn't believe that he caused this, he proposed the police raid on Tesla and looked what happened. Now Mark's Emolga was gone, kidnapped by Tesla within arm's reach away from him. He swore to protect his son against such dangers, and he failed. Kissinger wondered what the world was coming to.

"Are they going to swarm us?" Kissinger asked.

"If we play it cool, they will not." said Kelly.

"How's Trent doing?"

"He's doing fine, though he'll be stuck doing a desk job once he recover."

"I wonder if it's my fault, not only I asked for the raid the disaster happened at my watch."

"We all know the risk K."

"But do we know _all _of them?"

Kissinger made a turn and drove past a park, the place was crowded with people and Pokémon. Sparks of lighting, some fireballs, and impressive light shows signal the many Pokémon battles going on there. The police can't do anything about it, since the park's private land. He looked down the road and saw many people in the crowd talk to each other, others just stared at him as they banter their opinions about Tesla. Among all the public gatherings in Faraday City, this was the largest on record. Wait, scratch that. Not only was it the largest, but the first unofficial gathering. Under the glow of street lamps and tall buildings, Kissinger drove on, passing protestors along the way.

"Kelly," said Kissinger, "What's the official word on encountering Tesla?"

"What do you mean?" his boss asked.

"What do we do when we encounter him?"

"Warn him to stop, if he resist we-"

"Shoot him," Kissinger finished, "My son already shot him, I don't know what to think when he told me about it."

"What would you do if you had Tesla in your sights?"

Kissinger remembered Tesla's stare as he ran past him in his house, with Emolga helplessly being dragged away, "After what happened the night before, I would've done the same."

**. . .**

Cabot stood in position, facing the crowd with serious might. Axew stood firm as he glared at his opponents. Everyone watched as Cabot and the other trainers had their Pokémon out and ready, he had never fought in a battle with other trainers before. Especially when there are exactly _8 _Pokémon in play! It took several hours and one-hundred fifty pokédollars just too get here. After spending some time in researching the events, Cabot joined the supporters in their grand cause in freeing Tesla.

The old Pikachu proved famous, and it seemed likely that Tesla would be pardoned. The pressure was placed on the local authorities and government, more so than those who were trying to stop them. So far the police was just going around and making sure violence wasn't spurring, and they were doing quite a good job. Hopefully nothing would go wrong tonight.

_Okay_, he thought, _Think of a strategy._

When the battle was set in motion, Cabot made the first move. He barked out a command to Axew and he obeyed without question. He managed to get a blow on Gigalith, but the rock Pokémon knocked him back. Luckily another Pokémon came to his defense, but Gigalith's teammate defended him, and so on. The banter of commands were so loud that they nearly jammed communication between their Pokémon. It all led to dust being kicked up as fighting broke out.

As badly disorganized the Pokémon were, some still fought legitimately. But they were knocked out of commission within seconds, Axew still held firm after taking several blows as the chaos settled between a Pokémon battle and a Pokémon _brawl_. Cabot blinked twice as he realized all the bi-pedal Pokémon were just punching each other rather than doing actual battling, it was both humorous and confusing as well as terrifying. The other trainers just looked on as they tried to figure out what to do, the spur of the moment had taken quite an unexpected turn when the only fire-type Pokémon, a Tepig, came to the scene.

It aimed straight at Cabot's Axew, the Tusk Pokémon took noticed and got back in a battling stance. Cabot reacted quickly, "Axew, use Dragon Rage!"

"Axew!"

Axew summoned up all his strength and charged at Tepig, who in turn used Fire Charge. The whole world just exploded in dark energy and fire when the two collided, Cabot shot back with the other trainers. When the dust cleared, he saw Axew arching across the air screaming. Cabot's heart sank when he saw where he was about to land.

**. . .**

Somewhere in the field, an explosion occurred. It resulted in a small object being propelled out of the dust cloud and fly high into the air. Before Kissinger knew it the object landed on his squad car, turning his windshield into a spiderweb of fragments. Kissinger slammed on the breaks and hit both the car's blinkers and warning lights, he quickly put the car in park and breathed a sigh of relief, "You're okay, Kelly?"

"Yeah," said Kelly as he stared at the smashed windshield, its glass fragments still being held together by the safety film, "I'm okay, what was that?"

The windshield was so smashed up that there's no way Kissinger can see through it, but he can see blood on the center where the impact occurred, "I don't know. But whatever it is, it must be hurt."

Kissinger got out of the car and surveyed the damage on his windshield. Laying in the center of it was an unconscious Axew, its head was gashed open by the impact and its oozing out blood. When Kissinger realized he was in a daze, he snapped out of it before turning to the source of the explosion. The people there were in a stupor, wondering what just happened. All over the field, there were Pokémon sitting on their rears trying to shake off the daze that had engulfed their minds. It was a clear sign that another Pokémon battle went bad.

"Kelly," Kissinger called out, "An Axew's hurt!"

Kelly quickly got out of the car and saw the Axew for himself, "Where did this Axew came from?"

Kissinger pointed over to the source of the explosion, "Look no further."

A trainer came running out of the area and towards the police officers in a state of shock. He wore a red and yellow shirt, a pair of sky blue shorts, and brown sandals. A pair of thin-rimmed glasses donned his face, Kissinger noted that he was quite young, "Axew!" he cried when he saw his beloved Pokémon lay in the center of the squad car's windshield, all around the crowd started to take notice.

Kissinger placed his index and middle finger on the Axew's neck, he felt no pulse, "Damn it," he cursed, "Kelly, help me with this!"

"Okay sir," Kelly said to the trainer, "What's your name?"

"Cabot," said the trainer, "I was just over there battling with my Axew, something went wrong when he tried to use Dragon Rage and-"

"I've seen it Cabot, I've seen it happened. Now, how old are you?"

"Nineteen, sir."

Kissinger carefully picked the Axew up and laid it on the ground, then began to pump on its chest with his hands, _Don't quit on me_. Kissinger thought as he struggled to revive the Axew.

"Does your parents know about this?"

"Sir, my parents are in Hoenn. I just came from Unova this afternoon when I heard about the Tesla sensation here."

"You have any friends nearby?"

"The only friends with me are my Pokémon, which are in their Poké balls right now."

After repeated mouth to mouths and chest pumps, there's just no hope. The Axew's brain must be severely damaged, there's just no hope. Kissinger's eyes went big, when he just realized he tried to save the first Pokémon to die from the protests. He hesitated at first before he broke the news to Kelly, "This Axew's gone, Kell."

"No," screamed the trainer as he made a grab for his Axew, "Axew!"

Kissinger quickly got up and held Cabot back, "Easy buddy!"

"That's my best friend!"

"He's gone Cabot, he's gone! I repeat, he is _gone_!"

Cabot stepped back and took a swing at Kissinger, he intercepted his fist and drove his forearm into the back of the kid's neck. The force slammed his face into his squad car's bumper, knocking his glasses off. Kelly pinned him down as Kissinger cuffed Cabot's hands behind his back, "Kid," he said calmly, "Don't make it worse for yourself, it's already bad enough as it is!"

"Axew!" he sobbed as Kissinger shoved him into the back of his squad car.

Kissinger picked up Axew and Cabot's glasses, then handed both to Kelly. Protestors all around began to see what was happening and were beginning to get all riled up, some went angry awhile others just went completely emotional over the Axew. Their Pokémon shared similar feelings, but stood their ground as some protestors began to advance, "Let's get out of here Kelly!" said Kissinger.

Both cops quickly jumped back into their squad car, Kissinger locked the doors as some protestors got a little too close for comfort, "We gotta go to the hospital to drop off the Axew," said Kelly, "Then we head back to the station."

"Kelly," said Kissinger, "Cover your eyes."

Kelly shielded his eyes with a free arm as Kissinger bought his foot up over the dash. He gave the windshield a solid kick and it popped its frame, it broke up into three pieces, two of which fell onto the street as the third remained on the hood. Kissinger activated the siren before taking off as the protestors started throwing stuff at him.

"Whoops," Kissinger reached over and put on his seat belt, "Almost forgot."

"Axew!" cried Cabot in the backseat.

"Easy kid," insisted Kelly, "It's not the end of the world!"

"If this keeps up," said Kissinger, "It could be the end of this city!"

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	18. Chapter XVIII

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter XVIII_

It was a hard night for Mark and Ash, Matt helped them get settled in at his house. Mark slept in the guess bedroom, which used to be his Dad's former bedroom. Ash just slept on the couch, despite Mark being generous by offering him the bedroom.

As Ash slept through the night, he kept his Pokémon's Poké balls close to his chest. Loosing Snivy drove another stake into his heart, but there's no need to give up now. He's not leaving Faraday Island without his Pokémon, they're his friends and family members. All he wanted was a vacation to enjoy the sights, but wound up blundering into a local problem. He unintentionally sparked it and now it was all over the place, the subject on the street and major story on the news.

He had dreams about what his mother might be thinking, already he made it on the morning news. Being in front of Faraday City News cameras as he talked to the anchor was not a new experience, yet it was a new feeling. She was probably worried, wondering if he would break down. But no, Ash kept his cool as he talked in front of the camera.

It was Mark who broke down in front of the camera, he talked about his kidnapped Emolga with so much emotion that Ash had to turn away. At least he was letting it all out in one go, strong for him to do so. Ash was a bit too old for this kinda thing, again it wasn't new for him loosing Pokémon. It was Mark's first time, so it wasn't a surprised that he spoke his grievances to thousands of people on local television on such a huge level.

Ash opened his eyes and looked up at the ceiling. It was still dark outside, still night. He shut his eyes as the thought of Pikachu came to mind, a tear trailed down his cheek when he recalled the last time he saw him, _I'll find you Pikachu_, he thought, _Just hang in there. Snivy, I hope you found Pikachu and are reassuring him that things are going to __be okay_.

He felt something churn on his chest, when he looked down he saw Oshawott had escaped his Poké ball and was now snuggled into a comfortable sleeping position. Ash wrapped an arm around his Pokémon and brought him near his arm pit, then drift back to sleep.

**. . .**

Early in the morning, Tesla woke up with muscle aches. Quite common in his Post-Westinghouse years. But these aches were different, they're more painful and are all over most of his body. He climbed on all fours and stretched his limbs, moaning as he felt the muscles loosen up their knots. After popping several joints, he felt like he was ready to begin a new day. His stomach ached from the lack of food, Tesla could almost here it cry from the lack of dinner last night. That peanut butter got him going yesterday, he wished he had some right now.

Tesla's osteoarthritis started acting up again as he moved some joints, he ignored it as he crawled towards the cave entrance. He looked back at the cage and saw Pikachu sleeping with Emolga in his arms, the Raichu just lay there lazily as he snore. Whatever Snivy's condition was inside the box, Tesla didn't want to peak in and find out. He turned back towards the entrance and crawled out into the open to get some fresh air, the same old sun greeted him as always.

Among the trees that surrounded his small safehouse, Tesla glanced at the small brown pit being used as a latrine. It was sick in having to clean up the Pokémon's mess as they go, luckily he had small bins for that purpose. Though they hadn't been going much since they hadn't eaten in a while, maybe that was a bad sign. Tesla just shook his head, nobody deserves to live like this.

_Gotta get some food for this old body_, thought Tesla, _And for these youngsters_.

He stood up on his hind legs and watched over the city skyline, Faraday City was still beautiful even after all these years. It was home, a world that used to nurture and care for him. Now things are very different, Tesla struggled to adapt to the changing ages. Irvin would've struggled, if he's still around. He was going to go anyway, his health had already deteriorated enough that he just crapped out. Tesla felt that time is coming for him quite soon, though he doesn't wanna leave the world and join his trainer yet.

There's just some unfinished business that needed to be taken care of.

Tesla flexed his muscles again and started the walk to Faraday City, determined to settle that business.

**. . .**

Kissinger woke up on a bench at his FCPD district station's lobby, he sat up and stretched his limbs to loosen up the muscles and joints. He felt groggy and tired from last night, worse than what he normally feel in the morning. He got up and walked across the still-empty police station to the lounge where he got a cup of coffee, Kissinger took it back to his cubicle where he drank it all down in minutes.

_Damn_, he thought, _That was a rough night_.

Cabot was probably still crying in the cell around back, sad reality was that he might be charged for 2nd degree murder of a Pokémon. On top of that, he might be charged for aggravated assault for trying to hit Kissinger and vandalism for destroying his windshield. Kissinger didn't wanna press charges, even though he made the arrest himself.

He stared at his computer for a moment before hitting the power button, once it was started up Kissinger opened up his e-mail and looked it over. Just 57 unread messages, it took 30 minutes to read them all. Most of the e-mails came from friends who either felt sorry for his son or were completely worried about him, some of the e-mails came from City Hall about the things they claim to have found about Tesla. Kissinger already knew that stuff, and so deleted the e-mails after he read them. Once his inbox was empty, he shut down his computer and headed for the locker room.

Kissinger dialed in the combo to his locker and opened it. Inside was his FCPD law enforcement outfit, some 9mm ammo clips, a mirror, and a single family picture of himself, Mark, and his wife Sheila. Her wavy brown hair made her attractive enough, no matter what outfit she wore. Sheila happened to be a Tesla fan, a supporter who felt sorry about his situation. He remembered coming home one morning and told her that he's in charge of the case on Tesla. Sheila wasn't too thrilled, and told Kissinger that Tesla was a poor old Pokémon who just wanna be left alone. When he told her that he got to set the original bounty on Tesla's head, they had a bad argument. Days later, she left him.

That was many years ago, Kissinger and Mark had moved on but not entirely. He wondered what she saw in Tesla that he didn't, eventually he wondered when the Pikachu would be rid out of his life for good. With his squad car in the repair shop for the day, Kissinger decided to take a walk through town. He pulled out his uniform and got dressed in it, he looked at himself in the locker room mirror and check any imperfections. There were little, thanks to his embroidered badge, name tag, and all of the official insignias for the FCPD. Kissinger grabbed his 9mm and holstered it, along with his baton, taser, handcuffs, flashlight, everything he once carried when he first started out as a rookie.

_It doesn't hurt to be a street cop for one day_, Kissinger thought, _My job is my life anyway_.

Just as Kissinger head out the door, Kelly was just coming in, "Hadn't seen you in uniform for years," said Kelly, "Going out?"

"Just get out of the old cubicle for a while," said Kissinger, "Just to walk the block and get some fresh air, maybe take a few notes from the protests that's going on."

"Okay, just be careful Kissinger. You remember what happened last night, there could be more situations like that out there."

"I will, Kelly. Thanks for the reminder."

"Oh, a while you're out. Stop by the hospital to see Trent, I just got a call from him saying he wants to see you."

"I'll stop by to say hi."

As Kelly head back to his office, Kissinger walked out of the police station and casually strolled towards downtown.

**. . .**

"Ash?" said Mark's voice.

Ash opened his eyes and saw Mark standing before him, "You alright?"

"Yeah," Ash lied, "I'm fine."

"Oshawott." muttered Oshawott as he stirred awake.

"You wanna go out and get something to eat?"

"Sure. What about your grandpa?"

"He's going to stay home."

"Oh, alright. Just give me a minute."

"Sure, friend."

As Mark leaves him alone, Ash sat up and turned on the TV. Oshawott sat next to him, pressing hard against his side. Ash rubbed the Pokémon's head as he tuned the TV to the news, on the bottom of the screen dominated the title: "_FIRST POKEMON DEATH IN PROTESTS_"

"Hey Mark," Ash called, "You better get in here!"

Mark quickly returned, barely trying to get his socks on, "What's going on!?"

Ash pointed at the TV, "Look!"

Matt strolled into the room with sleep in his eyes, but they went big when he saw the TV, "Last night around 11:30PM, a Pokémon had been killed during one of the major Pokémon battles. Witnesses say that an Axew had shot up into the air from a failed Dragon Rage move and crashed on to the squad car belonging to Officer Emmett Kissinger. The owner's name is Cabot Richardson, who was soon arrested by Kissinger and later charged for 2nd degree murder of a Pokémon, aggravated assault, and vandalism.

"Officer Kissinger is the son of Matt Kissinger, the assistant of the diseased former Pokémon Master Irvin Westinghouse whose signature Pikachu, Tesla, is responsible for many accounts of aggravated assault, 1st degree murder on Pokémon, burglary, and Pokémon kidnapping spanning at least 20 years after Westinghouse's death.

Matt grabbed the remote and turned off the TV, "This has gone out of control, its just going to get worse!"

"How did they get all that information about us?" Mark asked.

"Probably they had a mole inside the FCPD, or because of my contribution to Irvin. I don't know what Tesla's thinking, but I'm sure he's having more of a tough time than all of us."

"I caught 1st degree murder from the news anchor," said Ash, "Is it from Magnemite, or from past Pokémon from other people?"

"Both," said Mark, "He was suspected for some deaths of humans that gone missing in his territory."

"I know Tesla," said Matt, "I know him so well, that if all these are true, then it's because of his struggle. After Westinghouse's death, the Faraday City Pokémon Lab wanted to acquire Tesla so he could get a new trainer. However he managed to escape before they got him, several trainers went after them and he became an outlaw, just like that. Oh, how's the search for Tesla went yesterday?"

"We found nothing," Mark lied, "No sign of him anywhere."

"Okay, keep me posted if you've found anything."

As Matt head off into his office, Ash and Mark got his shoes on and head outside. Oshawott jumped onto Ash's shoulder, taking the opportunity to take Pikachu's spot for the time being. Ash didn't mind one bit.

"Why didn't you tell him what happened?" asked Ash.

"He doesn't need to know that," said Mark, "I don't want to concern him even more."

"So, where do you wanna go eat at?"

"There's a restaurant I know of, somewhere near downtown. It's a very good restaurant, quite clean to."

"Lead the way, Mark."

**. . .**

_This one's empty too_. Tesla thought as he looked down the empty food waste bin.

His belly gnawed in pain as he jumped back on the ground and ran down the alleyway with all fours, he asked himself where would the food scraps be if there were any around. Well, he was now hungry and desperate enough to try just about anything.

Tesla sneaked behind a dumpster as he looked out into the street, there was a crowd of people gathering near a park. Protestors no doubt, but are they friendly or hostile? Tesla took a closer look at their signs, sure enough they're friendly, _But that doesn't mean I'm in the all clear_. He thought.

They were doing a major Pokémon battle, 4 electric-type Pokémons vs. 6 fire-types. When the battle began, so much fire and electricity shot all over the place that Tesla couldn't see either side at all. The humans cheered, urging the side they bet on to win. Already he could see some Pokémon fly out of the growing dust cloud with spirals in their eyes, when the dust settled only 2 electric-types remained. The rest of the Pokémon were knocked out cold.

Tesla just shook his head, this wasn't how Pokémon Battles were intended.

**. . .**

Kissinger strolled up and blended into the crowd, for a cop in uniform its more easier than it looks. No one isn't going to pay attention, they were too focused on the battles. If he played his cards right, he'll managed to catch some people doing illegitimate things, not that it mattered. He stood by the edge of the crowd and managed to get a spot to watch the whole scene unfold.

The trainers recalled their Pokémon as new trainers took their place. One side called out a few ground and bug-type Pokémon as the other called out a few normal and water-types. It was 4 against 6, a bit uneven but still a lot nonetheless. Kissinger whipped out his small notebook and began taking notes. The Pokémon began to flex their muscles as the trainers got into position. Then the "official" word was given to start.

Normally for a battle with more than one Pokémon, the trainer would order one Pokémon to attack at a time. But this was different, all the trainers ordered their Pokémon to attack all at once and the chaos began. Water Guns fired everywhere, poison gas followed suit. The rest were crude normal attacks that didn't seem to hit the mark, which caused a lot of dust to be kicked up. Kissinger saw the potential danger and recalled that it was his job to make sure it was safe. But he can't, at least legally. The park was on private land. Heck, all parks in Faraday City are private property. People can get away with a lot of things if they do stuff on their own property. Well, most of everything.

Kissinger jumped out-of-the-way as a Bouffalant came crashing where he stood. It was a near miss, he climbed back on to his feet and brushed his pants off as his trainer came rushing to his aid, "Are you okay, officer?" he asked.

"I'm fine," said Kissinger, "If I get wailed on though, it might give me an excuse to retire."

Bouffalant stood up and shook the dust off of him, "Bou!" he screamed at his trainer.

"Oh sure," his trainer said sarcastically, "It was my fault that happened to you."

The Pokémon and the trainer started to argue at each other, the battle was put on pause as attention divert towards the scene. Kissinger just stood there staring at the spot between the trainer and Bouffalant, not even speaking up when things started to get hairy, _Should I arrest him? _He thought as he glanced at the trainer, who's about ready to lose his temper any moment now.

**. . .**

With most the crowd distracted in the park, Tesla saw this as an opportunity. There were a nearby group of people eating breakfast at a small round table, leaning against their chairs were signs that showed they support him. They were sitting at the sidewalk right at the edge of the alleyway, eating what looked like a crossover between a breakfast burrito and a sandwich. Tesla's mouth watered as he stared at the plate of food, there seemed to be plenty for everyone.

Tesla checked his hands and saw his fur was somewhat crusty from muck, it had been a while since the last time he had a bath. No matter, might as well use that to his advantage. Due to the situation he was in, and his huge popularity, Tesla decides it's time to take a gamble. Normally he wouldn't do this in the past, but since things are now exaggerated, Tesla had to make a gamble.

_I'm not going to like this one bit_. Tesla groaned with the thought.

He walked out from behind the dumpster and slowly made his approach to the nearby group of people, he kept his tail hovered low as he crawled on all fours. It needs to be passive and friendly, showing he isn't a threat. Friend or not, humans will get startled if he comes in all puff up and angry. Tesla's heart raced, there was no telling how these humans will react to his presence.

Tesla approached the human closest to him, a teenager to the looks of it. Once he got right beside him, Tesla got up on his hind legs and tapped the human's leg in the shoulder. He made his eyes as wide as possible and put up the most impressive Lillipup face display he could think of. The human slightly turned away from talking to his friends and glanced at him, and nearly jumped out of his seat.

"What the," the human said, "Guys, look! It's Tesla!"

His fellow friends quickly took notice, "Tesla?" one of them asked.

"It's the Pikachu with the goggles," said the human, "It's definitely Tesla."

_Keep your cool Tesla_, Tesla told himself, _Show him you're hungry, get a few of his sandwiches, then literally run for the hills. That simple_.

Tesla reached up with his hands towards the plate of food, luckily the table was a bit too high which helped amplified the human's emotions and Tesla's advantage, "You're hungry little buddy?"

The old Pikachu nodded in a sheepish manner, still trying to maintain that Lillipup look.

"The city's been cleaning out the food waste bins Gerald," said one of his friends, "He's obviously hungry."

"Oh. Um, here buddy. Have some of this, it's really good!"

Gerald handed Tesla a sandwich, he quietly walked a few paces away from him and nibbled on the sandwich. He kept it in a polite manner, showing that he still have table manners. Through it all, the blast of flavor perked up Tesla's taste buds, causing him to let out a small smile as he managed to make it halfway through the sandwich.

"He's quite well-mannered," said a lady friend, "Oh look, poor thing's fur is all messed up."

"Easy there Ashley," said Gerald, "Tesla need's his space."

When Tesla finished the sandwich, he approached the table and begged for more, "Here," Gerald handed him another sandwich, "Have another one."

This time Tesla stayed a little closer to him as he ate the 2nd sandwich, he let's go of his Lillipup face and just enjoyed it. He missed eating for pleasure, hadn't done it in a long time. Food scraps were always half-eaten and sometimes rotted, nothing to enjoy eating. But fresh cooked food however is the best thing in the world in Tesla's mind, the taste of cheese and egg was one of the many things Tesla will never forget.

_I missed Irvin's cooking_. He thought as he finished the 2nd sandwich.

Just as Tesla looked up at Gerald for another sandwich, his expression changed, "Tesla, look out!"

Tesla shot around and saw a police officer, armed with a potato sack. He wasn't exactly close to bag him, more somewhere halfway in the pouncing position. Regardless, Tesla defended himself by using Iron Tail. The officer didn't have enough time to react as he took a hard blow to the collar bone and shot straight down the alleyway, he flew through the air before crashing into the wall of another building and disappeared. The bag he was holding fluttered down and landed in the middle of the alley, Tesla felt proud of himself for such a performance.

"The legend of Tesla is true!" cheered Gerald.

_The legend of what?_ Tesla thought.

"Hey look," said a voice not too far away, "It's Tesla!"

Tesla turned back towards the street and saw that people had taken notice of him, he turned back towards the alleyway and saw several SWAT officers coming in from around the corner. When they saw him, they quickly locked on to him like a missile.

_Here we go again_. Tesla thought.

"Freeze!" roared one of the officers as he point his gun at him.

Gerald jumped out of his chair and placed himself between Tesla and the police, several people quickly joined him and interlocked their arms to form a seemingly impenetrable human barrier. Their courage would always be remembered in Tesla's heart, sort of, "Run Tesla," cried Gerald, "Run!"

"Out of the way people!" roared another officer as they charge down the alleyway.

"Tesla's not guilty!" screamed a deranged human.

There was no time to think, the police may have most of the roads blocked off. Tesla recalled there's a ledge nearby, leading to a road that borders the ocean. If he can get to that edge, he might loose most of the police. It was a bold move, but Tesla had no other choice. With the sewers no longer usable thanks to police patrols and manhole monitoring, escape now seemed slim.

_Well_, thought Tesla, _I always defy the odds_.

The SWAT team charged at the human barrier of supports, they managed to hold them back during the first blow but maybe not after the 2nd or 3rd blow. Tesla took off and ran straight down the park, cutting through here might help him get to the edge of Faraday Island more sooner. Or so he thought.

**. . .**

Kissinger looked on as the trainer and his Bouffalant peacefully ended their argument, and just in time to. He began to hear chaos coming from the street, when he turned around he saw the situation as it unfolds. A group of people were blocking a SWAT team, pinning them into the alleyway as Tesla came running into the park. All eyes were on him. Some people were cheering, others just cried foul. Tesla didn't seem to care if he get's support or not, he was just interested in getting out of there in one piece.

Just when Tesla was 10 meters away, a few seconds turned to minutes as Tesla once again made eye contact with Kissinger. The officer noticed his bandaged arm, the area where his son shot him at. Looking closely, Kissinger saw Tesla for who he really was. Deep within his determined and stubborn profile, he saw Tesla was finally winding down. He was growing tired as 20 years of abuse and neglect from being on the run was now taking its toll. Tesla still had some kick in him, still some fight left. He's not giving up, he isn't stopping on his own. Someone had to grab him and pin his spirit down so it can rest, if that's possible.

Kissinger felt a buildup of rage explode inside him, recalling how Tesla barged into his home and taken his son's Pokémon. Tesla killed Mark's Magnemite, stolen several of his friend's Pokémon, letting himself inside the family home as much as he pleased. Kissinger was convinced that there's no hope saving Tesla, he's too far gone in his world of hate and loneliness. He couldn't stand the Pokémon anymore, enough's enough.

As Tesla made his closest pass, Kissinger made a grabbed for his gun. Like a scene out of a western film, Officer Kissinger drew his 9mm pistol and aimed it straight at Tesla. When he pulled the trigger, he saw the gun's slide shot back and ejected the spent cartridge before the bullet left the barrel. The bullet shot straight at Tesla in a bright yellow light, similar to what a laser would look like in a Sci Fi film. It was dead on, striking Tesla in the left thigh.

Reality went back to normal speed in an instant as a tiny spray of red mist blast into the air. Kissinger flinched when he heard Tesla let out a mournful scream, the force of the bullet shot his rear up into the air and cause him to somersault twice before face planting on to the ground. Blood flied everywhere, splattering the green grass in a 4 meter radius. All heads turned towards the scene. Before the blood settled, Tesla got back up and took off. Kissinger watch him limp as he dashed back onto the street and towards an alley at the other side of the park.

Before he vanished into the alley, Tesla looked back and glanced at Kissinger. The officer was horrified to see that all the anger and stubbornness was gone, it was all replaced with grief. Before Kissinger can comprehend, the old Pikachu disappeared.

Kissinger looked around and saw the public just looked at him, some were screaming, others just stared. A few people were actually cheering, but the majority of the crowd was silence despite all the noise still going on. The Bouffalant that was once the center of attention just went on its business, taking a nibble off the grass of the park. Just not caring what was going on. Kissinger realized he was still holding his pistol, which was pointed upwards in the sky. It was still smoking from the first round it fired outside the firing range.

"What have I done?" Kissinger asked himself, realizing he just finally used his firearm on duty for the first time.

He snapped out of it and holstered his weapon, then took off running after Tesla as he joined up with the SWAT team, "You shot him," said one of the special police officers, "We fired clips at him and we missed, but you got him out like a cowboy with one shot!"

"Now all we have to do is follow the blood trail." Kissinger muttered.

"You okay Kissinger?"

"No."

**. . .**

_I haven't come this far to quit now_, thought Tesla as he struggled to maintain his speed, the adrenaline was starting to numb his new gunshot wound, _Must keep going!_

Once again, he was shot. But this time it was more damaging, the bullet to his leg had slowed him down. Tesla didn't check if the bullet hit a major blood vessel, there was no time. He isn't that far now, the ledge was just a few turns away. All he had to do was keep going.

Tesla panted hard, trying to get more oxygen into his system. His body, almost clogged with old and dormant cells, was seizing up. The blood loss from his leg was like rust taking over the axle of a wheel. Once the rust takes over the wheel, the wheel's wedged in place. For Tesla, it was every joint in his system. So many factors were working against him: Old age, past battle wounds, osteoarthritis, the pain from Irvin's death, now blood loss.

_Keep going you old coot!_ Tesla told himself as he picked up the pace.

He escaped the alley and got back onto the street, this time it was more deserted. The ledge was in sight, including the ocean. Tesla ran faster towards it, then began to hear the police sirens coming behind him, _Almost there_. Tesla thought.

When he got to the edge, Tesla grind to a halt. He looked over the edge and saw the road below he was hoping for, sitting between him and the ocean it was bordering. His jaw dropped when he discovered how high it really was, if Tesla were to fall off the edge he would break every bone in his body upon impact. Tesla felt his heart ache, it was the end of the line.

When he turned back towards the road he came from, several squad cars pulled up and stopped just 5 meters away from him. Cops got out and drew their handguns, some pulled out their shotguns and aimed it straight at him. No more than 12 immediate cops had weapons drawn on him, with more on the way.

"Hold your hands where I can see them," a cop screamed at him through a bullhorn, "Show them!"

Tesla stood on his hind legs and held up his stubby hands, feeling a bit insulted, "You're under arrest!" the bullhorn cop screamed again.

The old Pikachu stepped back and felt his heel touch the edge of the cliff, seeing his predicament the cops held their ground and didn't advanced as expected, "Get on the-"

"Bob, he'll jump," a fellow cop interrupted the cop with the bullhorn, "There's no way he'll survive the fall!"

Bob lowered his bullhorn and looked at his comrade, "Why would he jump!?"

"He knows he done for either way, and can you see he needs to go to the hospital?"

As the two cops argued at each other on what to do, the rest kept their guns trained on him but with their fingers off the trigger. Tesla lowered his arms a little bit to relax, he saw a cop realign his pistol at him as a result. He looked at their faces, and already tell that they were once fans from another life. Unlike Kissinger, they weren't willing to shoot him, nor do they wanna kill him. Tesla's a legend, none of the cops wanted to kill a living legend. Then again, such a demise was quite appropriate.

_So is this it_, Tesla thought, _This is this where my life officially end?_

No, it can't end just like that. There's still some unfinished business to tend to, he won't leave this world until he completes it. The only question right now, was how to get out of this situation. If he runs left, right, or forward, he get's shot. Move back, and he plummets to the ground. Stay where he is, and more cops will show up and exaggerate the situation. Surrender, and he lose his freedom.

Tesla took a deep breath and thought for a sec about his final move, then his ears perked. He looked over his shoulder down below the cliff and saw a truck coming his way, the truck was loaded with enriched dirt. It appears soft enough to land on, though he'll risk getting his gunshot wound infected from it.

_Lucky bastard_. Tesla told himself.

He looked down and saw that the ground he stood on had a thin coating of powder, so fine that it can create a big dust cloud. His blood starting to drip down his leg and pooled around his foot, thankfully the blood lost had dramatically slowed down. An idea hatched in his head, and he grinned.

_Looks like you might live to see another day Tesla_. Tesla told himself.

The cops already saw he was planning something, they remain in their fixed positions as they kept their guns trained on him. Bob and his partner continued to argue at each other, their voices followed by the incoming sirens help drown out the loud engine of the truck lumbering by below, _Wait for it... Wait for it..._

Tesla listened as the dirt truck strolled almost behind him, _Now_.

He took his foot and kicked up a dust cloud, before jumping off the cliff. The cops let loose a few rounds but none of them came close to Tesla, he fell down the cliff and landed flat on the dirt pile in a satisfying thud. Tesla couldn't believe his luck, he let out a smile as he began to wind down from his dramatic encounter with the police, and Kissinger.

_What a close call_, Tesla thought as he chuckled, _Tesla, you fat old Pikachu, you done it again_.

**. . .**

As more squad cars pulled up, Kissinger got out of one of them and ran towards the cliff. He saw Tesla jumped on the way over here and worried that he might have hurt himself. When he peered over the cliff, he saw the Pokémon lay on his back on top of a pile of dirt with his hands behind his head. As the truck drives away, Kissinger just stood there nearly laughing to himself.

_He always have a card to play_. He thought.

Kissinger turned towards one of the cops as he jogged to the edge of the cliff, "He's gone friend," Kissinger told him, "He's long gone."

"Damn," said the cop as he slammed his bullhorn into the ground, somehow it didn't shatter, "We nearly had him to!"

"Don't worry, he won't get far. Even if he gets away, it won't be long before he gives in to fate."

_Hopefully that won't happen_. Kissinger didn't add.

"Well, I'm going to have to write a report that Tesla got away _again_."

As the cop walked away, Kissinger's phone rang and he answered it, "Hey Kissinger," said Kelly, "I heard reports that you shot Tesla, is that true?"

"Yes Kell," said Kissinger, "I'm now regretting it."

"I don't blame you, K. Look, meet me at City Hall. We can discuss this with Mayor Dixon, how soon can you get there."

"I'll head over there right now."

"Good, see you then."

Kissinger hanged up the phone before looking back at the road, the truck was now long gone, heading off to who knows where. He looked down and saw where Tesla once stood, a small pool of blood had collected there, maybe just a couple dozen grams of the stuff. It was still fresh, even though dust from Tesla's mini diversion now cover it. Kissinger looked away, unable to stand looking at it no more.

"He's not going to make it." he said to himself.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	19. Chapter XIX

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter XIX_

Ash sat at the table, barely touching his food as Mark nibbled on his across from him. Oshawott sat next to Ash and ate some Pokémon food, not even paying attention what was going on around him. The small diner wasn't really busy, there were a collection of people and Pokémon sitting at various spots in the restaurant. Some sat at the bar where they interestingly got their food quicker, Ash scanned the restaurant and saw a trainer hugging a small Pokémon. He shut his eyes and turned away.

"Ash." Mark called out to him.

Ash didn't pay attention, he just sat there drifting from reality to thought. He couldn't stop thinking about Pikachu's situation.

"Ash!"

Mark pounded on the table, jolting the plates in the process. Ash snapped out of his delirium and focused attention at Mark, "Yeah?"

"You barely touched your food," he said, "Is it about Pikachu?"

Ash looked away, "Yes." he muttered.

"How big is the history between you two?"

Ash told him the many times where he saved Pikachu's life and he saved his. Even after so much hardship, they managed to pull through to the end. Mark sat there and listened to every word, resting his chin in the palm of his hands. After about 10 minutes on hearing the short wrap of Ash and Pikachu's friendship, Mark held his head down for a moment, "Wow, that's a large history."

"Much more complex than it actually was," said Ash, "But you get the idea."

"Me and Emolga were friends from the start. On occasion we go out and explore Faraday Island, but that's when we were a lot younger. Now, almost an adult, I'm beginning to consider a vacation to Unova. So... What's it like there?"

"A huge diversity of Pokémon and so many opportunities to do things, I only went through half of it."

"You made any friends there?"

"Several friends, I've been traveling with a couple of people named Cilan and Iris. I've just recently won the Toxic Badge at Virbank City."

"Heard about the gym battles, how many badges you won so far?"

"All of them."

"Nice."

Mark sat back in his seat and sighed, "So why did you leave Unova and come to Faraday City? I've been wondering about that thought ever since you got here."

Ash didn't respond right away, "I heard about Faraday City, since it's not too far from Unova I decided to go check it out. Cilan and Iris are somewhere in a town that sits near the ocean, helping things around there until I get back."

"Whatever it is, I think you may had found it."

Ash raised an eyebrow, "Found what?"

"Someone or something brought you here Ash," said Mark, pointing a finger towards Earth, "Before you arrive, not too many things were happening. After you showed up, the world exploded. Now, what is your dream by the way?"

"I wanna become a Pokémon Master."

"You think it's a mere coincidence that we're chasing a Pokémon who once belong to a person who accomplished that same dream?"

"You know, I'd never thought of that."

"Maybe you can learn a few things from Tesla, if we can find him first. He's been around for a long time and spent his entire life battling. The look Tesla gave us when we stumbled across him for the first time, and how he shocked us, I'm getting a good idea what his problem really is."

"What's your theory, Mark?"

"It couldn't be Westinghouse's death, Tesla knew he's going to go. There's something that made him who he is, actually scarring him, maybe it has to do with his own beginnings. Of course, it's just a theory. We'll ask Tesla that once we figure out how to tame him."

Mark pulled out a 20 Pokédollar bill and sat it on the counter, "Still hungry?"

"No."

"Let's get out of here then."

Ash pulled out Oshawott's Poké ball and aimed it at him, "Oshawott, return."

A red beam of light shot at Oshawott and he was reabsorbed into the Poké ball, once it shrank back down to palm size Ash pocketed it and returned his attention back to Mark, "Lead the way."

**. . .**

Pikachu held tight onto the bars as he stared at the entrance of the cave. Tesla was kind enough to set the remote in the cage, when Pikachu turned the TV on the news stated that Tesla was shot by Kissinger. A small phone video showed Kissinger firing a shot at Tesla as the Pokémon ran by, it was disturbing to hear him scream like that.

He sat down on his rear and stared at the TV screen, no longer listening to the news anchor or the quick interviews of those who're involved. Pikachu turned off the TV and sat back down, _Why am I in this situation? _He thought.

Many things occurred in Pikachu's life that he never quite understood, but never had a situation like this drove him this deep before. He agreed to cooperate with Tesla, but if Tesla's hurt then he might not come back. It was a grim thought, Pikachu tried not to think of it when it crossed his mind.

His hunger had mostly diminished, though it was still there. Pikachu thought of eating a big red apple, especially those that were blasted with a Thunderbolt to bring out the flavor. He hadn't eaten one since he and Ash left Unova, Pikachu would kill for an apple right now. He wondered if there were any apple trees growing on the island. Probably not. Tesla might bring fresh apples in if there were any growing in the wild, getting one fresh from the tree was always the best.

Pikachu would just sink his teeth into one, bite off a chunk, and after chewing it up a bit just let the pulp sit on his tongue and tickle his taste buds with flavor. It made his mouth water, which was enough for Pikachu to imagine holding one. The big round apple, fresh from the tree, polished enough where Pikachu can see himself on it. He licked his lips before trying to take a bite, only to have it vanish on him.

_Whoa_, Pikachu thought as he looked at his hands_, I must be seeing things_.

Pikachu felt Emolga placed his hands on his back and began to scratch, he can't help but relax and let Emolga worked his fingers, "Emolga." he reassured Pikachu in a soft voice that he was here for him.

"Ahh." Pikachu cooed as Emolga moved on to the ears.

As Emolga scratched his back, he began to tell about the times he spent with Mark. He explained that on many situations, he and Mark would screw up at something and disaster would start. Emolga told Pikachu an example of a time where Mark tried to power his TV because the power box to the house was broken and needed to be replace, he hooked Emolga up in the crudest fashion possible by taping two thick wires to his cheeks and connecting each end of the wire onto the teeth of the TV's plug. The crude system worked, but now Mark discovered there was no signal. So he hooked up the satellite box to Emolga's cheeks and managed to get a clean signal.

Unfortunately, there was no surge protection. A few minutes went by and Emolga's nose started to tickle, when he sneezed, he inadvertently unleashed a surge of power into the TV and satellite box and destroyed them. Had Mark hooked a surge protector to Emolga rather than the receiver box and TV directly too him, this wouldn't happened.

Pikachu laughed when Emolga finished the story by saying he had no idea what happened until he tried to turn the TV back on, he was that clueless on the situation.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu laughed.

"Emo Emo," Emolga said it was even more funny being there, "Emolga."

"Pika Pika Pikachu?" Pikachu asked him why Tesla called him dumber than a bag of hammers.

"Emolga?" Emolga had no idea what Pikachu was talking about."

"Pika Pika Pikachu, Pika Pika P." Pikachu explained that Tesla looked deep into his eyes and found something about him, prompting the insult.

"Emo?" He asked if that really happened.

"Pika!?" Pikachu slightly chuckled as he asked him he forgotten all about that.

Pikachu turned and saw Emolga with a confused look on his face, he just shrugged his shoulders, "Emolga." He said he didn't remember it.

Emolga resumed scratching Pikachu's back, the two remained silent for a few minutes until Raichu stirred. They all watched as Raichu got up and stretched his arms and legs, "Raichu, Rai Rai Raichu?" he asked if he had told him that time where he took a ride in the bus and nearly got thrown out of it for smearing a chocolate bar all over the backseat.

Emolga and Pikachu glanced at each other for a moment, then returned their attention to Raichu. Normally Pikachu would say yes and tell him he heard all of his stories to spare himself from his torture, but since things have been a bit dull and with nothing good on the TV...

"Pikachu, Pika Pika?" Pikachu said no and asked Raichu what happened.

**. . .**

The truck that carried Tesla rolled through the suburbs and took him to the other side of the city, Tesla looked around and saw he was at the other side of downtown and there weren't much traffic about. Just as the truck slowed down Tesla climbed down the back and jumped down to the asphalt. He let out an oomph as the momentum from the truck caused him to skid a couple of meters before rolling to a stop. As the truck drives on, Tesla limped into an alleyway to avoid being seen.

Now safe, Tesla looked around for a temporary shelter. He managed to find a cardboard box that once packaged a stereo. He climbed into the box and add turned it so he was facing towards the wall, then began to address his new wound. It looked bad, the bullet hole in Tesla's thigh was the size of a coin. It stopped oozing out blood but it was still bleeding slightly. It didn't hurt as bad before, now pain completely prevent further use of his leg. Tesla winced as he tried to move the leg, it stung worse than the gunshot wound at his arm.

Tesla laid down on his back and tried to save little energy he had left, if he was discovered by the police there was no way he'll be escaping. He felt tears surge up in him, Tesla tried to hold them back but a few drops escaped, _I thought I was too old for tears_, he thought, _I'm so tired..._

All those hours of training, all those hours of battling, all of it, came down to this. The famous Tesla Westinghouse, who never lost a battle, might lose the war he inadvertently created. Fighting battles was one thing, but fighting wars... There was no rules in war, no civility about it. It felt like a free-for-all where everybody was either with or against you. The champion turned outlaw now felt his life was reaching an end, nor was it a surprise either. Tesla reached an age few Pokémon would ever live to see, the thought of a trash collector finding his rotting corpse made Tesla chuckle. The look on the guy's face would make his day, but of course, Tesla wouldn't be around to see it.

_Irvin_, he thought, _We may soon be reunited, just give me a moment and I'll join you eventually_.

Tesla closed his eyes and waited for his end. He wondered how dying actually felt like, or what the experience will be. Maybe there's no true answer to what would happen to your conscious when you die, the experience might be unique to every person. Maybe he'll be reincarnated into another Pokémon, or a human. Maybe he'll fly up to space and see the entire universe before being reabsorbed by it. Or maybe, just maybe, he'll see if there was really a place for an after-life.

_This world is just weird enough as it is_. Tesla thought.

After a few minutes of waiting, Tesla heard voices nearby. He listened closer and began to make out their words, _I know those voices_.

Maybe this wasn't his time, yet. Besides, he didn't plan on using this box as his coffin anyway. Tesla rolled on his belly and used his good leg to push him out of the box, then started crawling back out into the open.

**. . .**

"You did what with Emolga?" Ash asked in disbelief.

"Redneck hot potato." repeated Mark.

"What's redneck hot potato?"

"You take a knotted up piece of cloth, add butane fuel, then set it on fire. The point of the game is to try not to hold on to it longer than a second, or it will burn you. Me and Emolga tossed the fireball to each other last spring, the grass was dry as a bone from the drought that plagued the island for weeks. So when we dropped the fireball, it sat the entire backyard on fire. I mean, it went up really fast!"

"Anyone got hurt?"

"Emogla singed his tail, but was alright. I managed to get a fire extinguisher and a garden hose and put out the fire, then later lied to my Dad on how the big gray spot appeared in our backyard by denying any knowledge of it."

Ash saw a cardboard box shift, he held out an arm to stop mark as he watch the box pushed forward, "What is that?" Mark asked.

Mark and Ash's eyes went big as Tesla kicked the box out-of-the-way, he struggled to crawl towards them as he dragged a bleeding leg. He held out an arm towards them and said with tears in his eyes, "Please... help me."

"I guess you were right about him talking, Mark," said Ash, "Mark?"

Mark charged at Tesla and grabbed him by the arms, the old Pikachu let out a squeal as Mark slammed him into the brick wall with force. He's no longer afraid of getting shocked, the tables had turned. Not to mention he was filled with rage about Tesla's actions, "Where's Emolga," he barked at Tesla, "Where's my best-friend!"

"He's safe," Tesla winced, "He's alright. Let me go, your hurting my arm!"

Mark grabbed Tesla's previous gunshot wound and squeezed it, Tesla let out a small scream from the sharp jab of pain, it made Ash upset from hearing that, "Where is Emolga!" Mark yelled in a much clearer voice.

"With Pikachu," gagged Tesla, "He's safe... He's with Raichu and Snivy, they're all fine but they're all hungry!"

_He had Snivy all along? _Ash asked himself.

"I'm not asking you about their status," Mark squeezed his grip around the gunshot wound harder, "I'm asking where are they!?"

"Let go, let go!" pleaded Tesla, he kicked his legs and tried to fight back but unloaded little resistance.

"Mark," cried Ash, "Mark, stop!"

"Where is he!?" Mark asked again, "For the last time, where IS EMOLGA!?"

Tesla didn't respond right away, "Let go! Let go! Someone help me!"

Ash clenched his hand into a fist and punched Mark in the cheek as hard as he can, the force knocked Mark back as he released his grip on Tesla. The old Pikachu landed on his rear as Mark collapsed on his back in the middle of the alleyway. Ash panted as he shook the pain out of his hand, then stared at Mark for a moment, "Ah damn," Mark said as he sat up, he placed a hand on his cheek and sat there for a moment, "I think you knocked out one of my molars."

"That wasn't where I was aiming." said Ash.

Mark shook the dizziness out of his head and blinked a couple of times, he glanced at Tesla and saw how weak he was. His expression quickly changed as he appeared to have a change of heart, "Oh crap, what have I done!?"

Tesla sat against the brick wall panting hard, his eyes were half-open from fatigue as he struggled to maintain whatever strength he had left. Mark quickly scrambled towards him and picked him up, gently this time.

"I'm so sorry!" Mark cried.

"No," said Tesla, "I had that one coming."

"Give me him," Ash picked Tesla out of Mark's arms and cradled the old Pikachu as if he was his own, "What happened Tesla?"

"I was shot by Mark's dad," said Tesla, "He reacted the same way Mark here did, anger first, emotional sympathy the next. I was just only out getting food, me and the other Pokémon hadn't eaten anything in three days."

"Where's my Pikachu?" Ash asked calmly.

"He's in a cage somewhere in a safehouse, just like the other Pokémon."

"Why did you take them in the first place?"

"People just won't leave me alone."

Tesla pulled of his goggles and unleashed a buildup of tears, "I'm tired, I'm hungry, and I just wanna retire. But people won't keep their hands off me, I just don't wanna fight anymore. In fact, I never wanted to fight to begin with."

He was sobbing now, Ash held Tesla's head against his chest and held tight to him. Mark got back on his feet and brushed himself off, Ash saw a bad bruise develop on his cheek from where he punched him, "What do we do?"

"We can't take him to the Pokécenter," said Ash, "The police will be all over him, you have your grandpa's phone number?"

"Yeah."

"Call him."

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	20. Chapter XX

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter XX_

"We nearly had him," said Mayor Dixon, "What went wrong?"

"Tesla jumped off a cliff and caught a ride," explained Kissinger, "It won't be long till he finally-"

Dixon raised his hand, "I know, I saw what happened on the news of you shooting Tesla."

"I was just getting to that, sir."

"I'm getting reports of protestors getting violent in some pockets of the city, several arrests had been made. We may soon have Tesla behind bars and we can bring peace to this city at last."

Kissinger sat up in his chair and folded his hands, "Look Dix, Tesla may had done a lot of bad things but they're for good reasons. All this began from Tesla running away after Westinghouse's death, it first started out as a missing Pokémon report. When the trainers came in to get him, Tesla attacked them. They call the police in response, and Tesla attacked them when they're trying to bag him. Everything that just happened now is the final result."

"And it took years to reach this peak," Dixon added, he fold back his hair with his hand and returned his attention to Kissinger, "Years... What are you trying to do?"

"I asked you if we can get him a pardon, have I not?"

"We can, but the Governor of-"

"Yes, I know that. Now I'm asking you if we can contact the governor and get Tesla a pardon."

"Tesla's has man and Pokémon slaughter charges against him, that's enough to get him capital punishment. Besides, the governor never really liked Tesla. He's actually one of Westinghouse's rivals in the old days, you know that?"

"No, I do not sir."

"I had my own Pokémon face Tesla, they were both defeated with a single blow. A Pikachu with that power should had evolved into a Raichu by now, I recall that Westinghouse tried to evolve him one time but it failed."

"How did it fail?"

"Nobody knows, but Westinghouse suspect it's Tesla's will power. Eventually the Thunderstone was tested on several electric-type Pokémon to see if it was real, it was. After a failed 2nd attempt, Westinghouse decided to give up and the Thunderstone found its way back into the Faraday City Pokémon Lab, where it remains ever since."

Kissinger thought for a moment, "I've known Tesla since I was a little boy, he isn't a bad Pokémon. I realized that when I saw the look on his face after I shot him, what he really feels. Mayor Dixon, Tesla deserves a pardon."

"I'll see what I can do Kissinger," said the mayor, sounding a bit irritated, "You should really seek another opinion though. Your father worked with Westinghouse and knew Tesla the longest, go over to his house and talk to him about it. After all that just happened, he should really need to hear your version of events."

Kissinger hadn't talked to his father in a few months, though Mark occasionally talks to him. Dixon's right, he and his old man needed to sit down and chat this over.

"I'll take your advice Mayor." Kissinger replied.

**. . .**

Matt didn't know what was going on, all that Mark said that he ask him to drive to a location somewhere in downtown to pick him and Ash mark. The old station wagon that Matt had for 30 years was showing it's age, even though it had 60,000 miles on it. The bus system was more convenient than the car, since he doesn't have to be the one driving.

Along the way, Matt saw how dangerous things were becoming. He had to make a few detours because some roads were blocked with protestors, they were beginning to clash at each other as the police came in to break up the fights. Thankfully they didn't paid much attention to him, they're too focused on their cause to take much notice to anything else. Matt hadn't been watching the news and wondered what got everyone so riled up, he made a mental note to check on that once he get home.

When Matt reached downtown, he found Mark and Ash standing in the sidewalk. His eyes went wide when he saw what Ash was holding in his arms, "You found him!?" Mark asked as the two got into the back.

"We found him," said Ash, "But he's hurt, badly."

"Take us to your house grandpa," said Mark, "Quickly!"

"Alright," said Matt, "Just make sure nobody sees him through the windows."

"I got an idea."

Ash removed Tesla's goggles and sat them aside, the old Pikachu blinked hard in trying to clear his vision.

"When we get to safety," said Tesla, "Can I have a bath?"

"In the bathtub or in the sink?" Mark asked.

"Whatever works for you, just please clean me up before patching up my wounds."

"You got him talking!?" Mark asked in surprise, it was the first time he heard him speak.

"No," said Ash, "He just spoke cause he needed help."

Matt continued to drive back home, but took a different route. The chaos unfolding at the city center wasn't reaching its peak yet, but it already looked just as bad. He had his driver-side window open just a crack. All the sounds from the protests were loud and clear, it sounded like it was coming from above. Few cars were on the road, but there were unusually no pedestrians around. He constantly looked around and checked to see if they were being followed, so far he didn't see any suspicious vehicles.

When Matt pulled up on the driveway of his house, he opened the automatic garage door and drove in. He killed the engine before closing the garage door, when it fully shut the group got out of the car and heads straight to the kitchen. As Mark turned on the hot water at the sink, Ash lay Tesla down on the counter where Matt examined his injuries, "Goodness gracious," he said when he saw the gunshot wound in his thigh, "Who shot you?"

"Your son Emmett," said Tesla, "With a 9mm."

Matt pressed his finger on the bandage around Tesla's arm, "What happened here?"

"Mark, tell him."

"I shot him with my .22 rifle an effort to get him to stop running." admitted Mark.

"It hurt little, but the 9mm on the other hand packed a bigger punch. The femur stopped the bullet, luckily it didn't hit any major blood vessels," Tesla chuckled to himself at the thought, "To come to think of it, I've been shot at so many times in the past 20 years and only Emmett and Mark had their rounds hit dead on."

Matt removed the bandage and saw the older bullet wound, it was covered in puss and reddish brown muck. He sat the bandage down and glanced at Mark, "Is the water ready?"

Mark touched the water with his finger, "It's ready."

Ash picked up Tesla and placed him in the water, his eyes droop as the warm water relaxed his muscles. Matt handed Ash a sponge and some shampoo he began scrubbing the grime off of Tesla's fur, the water started to turn from clear to a murky brown within seconds, "When's the last time you had a bath?" Ash asked.

"About a week ago," said Tesla, "A bath like this however, the night before Irvin died."

"You know there's fleas living in your fur?"

"Yes, I do. I got that from Emolga."

"How do you know it was Emolga?" Mark asked.

"Cause I checked him and he had fleas, he then gave them to Raichu and Pikachu. I can't work much anger on him though, I'm just too tired after all these years."

Mark got out a bucket and filled it with warm water, then poured it over Tesla's head, "Creature comforts," he muttered, "I've been feral for so long that I've forgotten what they really felt like."

"You mind if I ask you about your age?" Mark asked.

Tesla turned and looked at him, "You really wanna know?"

"Sure."

"97."

Ash retreated his arms from the sink and shot back, "97!?"

"97 years old," said Tesla, "I've been around since Matt's childhood."

"I never knew how old you really were," said Matt, "But... Wow, 97. How did you live for so long?"

"Through sheer force of will maybe, I don't know. I manage to keep in shape during the Post-Westinghouse years."

"How?" Ash asked.

"It's called, _Running away from the police and trainers as they nip at your heels, _exercise program."

"You run quite fast for a Pokémon your age." said Mark.

"Believe me, it takes sheer force of will. Heck, my osteoarthritis tried to seize me up but I kept on going."

Tesla's fur appeared brighter than before, Ash continued to scrub as Mark dumped more shampoo on his back, "Back at the forest where we first had our encounter," Ash began, "Why did you knocked us off our feet?"

"You were in my territory, that's one. Another was that I was doubtful of your intentions, you weren't the first who told me that you were trying to help me. Several trainers lied to me in order to get within arm's reach, I couldn't trust you until Pikachu slammed into the electric fence."

"You saved his life."

"That fence claimed a lot of lives over the years, it was foolish for having your Pikachu to run like that. The reason a lot of Pokémon trainers loose their Pokémon to me was because of foolish decisions, which was why I kidnapped your Pikachu and Mark's Emolga."

Ash stopped scrubbing, "Where did you take him?"

"A safe place," said Tesla, "But I'm not telling you just yet."

"Are they okay?"

"Yes, unless that Raichu starts yapping like crazy. Damn, he never shuts up. I had to shock him a few times just to shut his fat face up."

Mark chuckled, "Henry's Raichu was always a chatter box."

"You don't have to remind me."

Ash continued scrubbing, making sure he got underneath the armpits and hard to reach places, "From all the information I dug up about you, it all says you were very grumpy."

"More like stubborn and aggressive," said Tesla, "I never let anyone close besides Irvin."

"Why?"

"You ever thought about the politics of the world?"

"No."

"Let me give you the short version of what the world _really _is. The human race dominates the world as the Pokémon are forced into servitude for good and evil intentions. Humans use Pokémon to battle each other for their own gain, often training and perfecting them to success. Among the travels I went with Irvin, I saw some things no one should ever see. It woke me up to what it really means: Humans are superior, Pokémon are inferior. The human world requires Pokémon to function, yet Pokémon don't have much choice in the world."

"I let my Pokémon choose if they want to battle or not." Ash insisted.

"It's not that Ash, your missing the point. I told your Pikachu the same thing, he had no trouble understanding my _human _words. Don't you see Ash? Politically, Pokémon don't have much rights. Do you like being stored in a very tight space for a good portion of your life?"

"No, I don't."

"Neither does Pikachu. Of course, the Pokémon's bond to humans and vise versa are strong. But I seen cases where humans abuse their Pokémon, and I've know of other cases where some Pokémon have at least 40 trainers in their lifetime. I had a close friend who couldn't have a permanent trainer. That Pokémon was tossed around from trainer to trainer several times a month for 5 years straight, eventually he ran away and was never heard from again until they found what's left of him in the river."

"Oh that's sad."

"I've been Irvin's Pokémon for 70 years, we had more adventures than you ever had in your own life Ash. The only problem was that I didn't get to enjoy the landscape and make my own choices. Wherever Irvin goes, I go. It's kinda how things work at the time. I never thought much of it and neither does Irvin, I just went along with it. He taught me a lot of things, but never does play with me for anything. In a much shorter description, I've seen the world but I was unable to enjoy it."

"I was with Irvin and Tesla through some of their travels," said Matt, "Tesla were to wanna go visit something but Irvin doesn't let him, I do recall one time he wanna climb a mountain and he was denied. We just head from gym to gym, not stopping for anyone or anything."

"Despite being harsh on some things, Irvin does love me. It didn't look like love, but it felt like it. He takes good care of me, hugs me, feeds me, snuggle me a while we're both in bed. The only things I was able to enjoy in life were my _unconventional _training, such as practicing how to use firearms and arm explosives."

"I saw the video of you shooting Pidgeys." said Ash.

"Those birds didn't stand a chance, firearms always destroy the competition."

"Yes," said Mark, "Yes, they do."

Ash pulled Tesla out of the sink and sat him on the counter, then Mark proceeds to dry him off, "When Irvin died," the old Pikachu continued, "It was safe to say that a chapter of my life was put to a close. Irvin was getting old, he was suffering from a heart condition. I knew in advance he was going to go, I just don't know how. On some nights, I dreamed of the flashbacks before and after Irvin's death. The only reason why these bad memories keep turning up was because of my situation with the law. It was hard when Irvin passed, among that grief came up a surge of relief, when I realized that my Pokémon battling days are over."

Ash took the towel and wiped Tesla's ears with it, "You were getting tired of Pokémon battles?"

"I never liked them in beginning," said Tesla, "It just felt all wrong. Every time I go out into the arena to fight, I have at least a thousand human eyes staring at me. I never lost a single battle, either officially and unofficially. I alone made Westinghouse famous, but I also became more famous than him because of my human-like talents."

"Like what?"

"I'm a great musician, I can play several instruments and even sing. I made a lot of money off of those talents on the sidelines, it felt a lot better than battling. I never lost a Pokémon Musical contests because of my abilities, Irvin was proud of me for that one since I taught myself music at an early age."

When Ash finished drying Tesla, Matt added alcohol to Tesla's wound before bandaging them. He didn't winched from the sting, but remained relax. Mark then picked him up and laid him on a couch where he gave him a pillow and a thick blanket, Matt made sure Tesla was comfortable by letting him sip a glass of water, "How did you learn how to speak?" Ash asked.

"It was the first thing Irvin taught me," said Tesla, "He wanted to know what's on my mind, he didn't like using his judgment when communicating with Pokémon. It was hard at first, I just had to figure out how to move my lips and use my vocal cords in a different actions."

"It sounded like he was choking at first," said Matt, "It was so hilarious."

"It only took me two weeks," Tesla continued, "I managed to say my first word, then a small sentence, and finally a paragraph. I remain silent most of the time, because I only speak to Irvin, alone. Besides, I'm a very private individual which explains a lot of things."

"Why are you so grumpy," Ash asked, "Not let anyone close and zap people or Pokémon if they do?"

Tesla didn't answer right away, "I had a family, a biological family. I was one of 8 baby Pokémon to a couple of Pikachus, born somewhere in the forest in the Kanto region. I had a loving mother and supporting father, I was so happy without a care in the world. I remember when I was a Pichu, I play with my brothers and sisters from dawn to dusk almost everyday and we all sleep in the same bed. I was the oldest of the bunch, and played my elder sibling roles well. By the time we all evolved into Pikachus, things started to change."

"What happened?" Ash asked.

"Some humans came by into our forest and snatched us all up, they lure us in. The sad part about it all, I knew what was happening. But I can't convince my folks or siblings about it, eventually we were all taken in without being harmed and we were transported to a Pokémon Lab. The humans treated us alright, though I was skeptical of it all. And then..."

Tesla shut his eyes tight, it was becoming emotional, "They came in and took me away from my family. I was too smart for their sweet words, I knew it would be the last time. I fought with my fist and tried to bite back, my parents and other siblings tried to come to my rescue but they were held back by tougher Pokémon. They were... I was..."

Matt can see the tears coming, he grabbed a nearby box of tissues and handed it to Tesla. He grabbed a few sheets and blew his nose, and dried his eyes, "Thanks." he sniffled, "Where was I? Oh. After I was separated, I was forever changed. I just grew a hatred for people, no matter who they are. I didn't let the beginning trainers get near me, I just gave them a hard look and they back off. I was flown to several regions and traveled to many Pokémon Labs for at least a year, repeating the same scenario. I finally made it onto Faraday City when I was just 8 years old. At the Pokémon Lab, the one in this very city, a young teenager by the name of Irvin Westinghouse came up to me."

"How did the first time you met Irvin go?" Ash asked.

"It went like this, I growled at him as he reached out his hands. Unlike the others, who simply backed off, he stood his ground. He just looked at me and said: _Oh, so that's how you wanna play it_. And then he growled back. Though I didn't show it, I thought that was quite funny. So I let him picked me up, got a good feel of me, and decides to choose me as his starter Pokémon."

"Just like that?" Mark asked.

"Just like that."

Tesla then let out a big yawn before snuggling into the couch, "A few days after we met, my vision started to blur. I couldn't see the fingers on my own hand, it was that bad... And my vision is still bad."

"Oh," said Matt, "Hold on."

Matt left the living room and walked into the garage where he pulled out a fresher pair of goggles, he head back to the living room and handed Tesla the goggles. He puts them on and sighed, "And once it became so bad, me and Irvin soon met Matt. He helped fixed my vision, and gave me my name."

"It was a challenge," said Matt, "But I got it done."

"I know it's a bit late but... Thanks for correcting my vision Matt, I would've never made it through life without you."

"Can you explain what happened to Irvin's hand?"

"His hand?"

"He had both hands when we met, but when he finally left home to start his journey he had one. I was shocked at seeing that, but he refused to tell me what happened to him."

"Short story, he wanted me to use a Thunderbolt on a copper pipe, and he was holding that copper pipe. He were in the backyard where he waved it up in the air, commanding me to pull a Thunderbolt on it. We weren't entirely bonded at the time, so I didn't listened at first. But when he offered peanut butter... I gave it all I got. I unleashed a powerful Thunderbolt at Irvin, it was so powerful that it his hand exploded."

Ash, Mark, and Matt's eyes went wide, completely stunned, "As Irvin collapsed onto the ground, I just stood there surprised at my own power. It was the first clue of what I would become, I just stared at the burned stump for a minute until Irvin sat up... With a smile on his face, _Damn_, he said, _You don't even know you're own strength_.

When his mom came out to see what happened, she was horrified. Irvin though said it was only a flesh wound, and I'll tell you that statement made everything funny. So after the quick trip to the hospital, Irvin's mom and dad wanted him to get rid of me because of what I did to him. He convinced his folks to let me stay for one night, Irvin used that opportunity to pack up his things and we both ran off into the night. That's how our journey together started, believe it or not."

"You blew off his hand and he still loved you?" Mark asked.

"He saw my potential, mostly felt it though, but saw it. It was a long journey, and a great run. At least it's all behind me now."

That's when Matt remembered something, "Tesla?"

"Yes Matt?"

"Irvin left behind his will, its written directly to you."

Tesla's eye's went big, "He did!?"

"Yes."

"Where is it?"

"Let me get it."

Matt head over to his bedroom where he dialed the code to his safe, once he opened it he pulled out the a small envelope and took it back to the living room. He open up the envelope and pulled out the will, it appeared tan from old age but it was in good condition nonetheless. Ash and Mark stepped back and sat on the other couch as Matt read the letter out loud,

"Dear Tesla," it began, "I know you've been expecting this for sometime, that I may past away. Well, if you're reading this, or someone is reading this to you, then I had died regardless of the cause. Knowing you, you're probably reading this note years after my passing. Judging by all the popularity and celebrity status we both built up over the years, you must be spending most of your time trying to avoid newbie trainers from trying to catch you. Judging by your nature, the law may be on to you as well.

"If this is happening to you, I'm so sorry. I know you don't like how the system works in the world. Yes, I know your distress about your position and rights. Don't let that overcome you, from what I seen in you since we've met in the Pokémon Lab you are more of a person than a Pokémon. You can speak to other humans, walk like them, even behave like them at times. To access your Pokémon side, all it takes is a jar of peanut butter.

Tesla chuckled at that last part.

"We both had a fun adventure, I'm well aware that it was more like training for you than fun. I'm sorry for taking away most of your free time, and I do know that you like to sneak out at night to get wasted from time to time. It's quite predictable, you know. We both had a fun adventure, now it's your turn to have your own. I have left at least 10 million Pokédollars in the bank, you can easily access this since I set it up for you to take over once I died. That should help you get a fresh start in the world, just make sure it lasts a long time.

"Now I know that old age is having a hard time on you, since you've been showing it here and there. I have left at least 1 million Pokédollar underneath Matt's mattress for a procedure that will _cure _old age. Some conditions may still be prevalent, but you'll be feeling young again once your biological clock has been reset.

"There's one more thing I need to tell you, it relates to your parents. I managed to dig up some info about them, I discovered that after you were taken away from your biological family your siblings were soon separated and scattered around the world. Your mother couldn't take the shock and had died of a heart attack just 20 estimate years. Your father lived on a little bit more he too passed.

"The reason why I placed you in the breeding program for a few years is because I wanted you to feel that you still have a family, the one that was taken from you. I tracked down several of your siblings, then their children, and eventually their children. I explained the ones who I managed to find and are still alive what has become of you, and how you're doing. They couldn't stop crying, they really remembered and still love you after all those years.

"You have children of your own, in total you have at least 20 children. At least 8 female Pikachus bore them. Some of them had their own children, and some of them have their own children. A branch of your family directly linked to you are based somewhere in Unova, see if you can look into that in your own travels.

"I hope this will produce the foundation of a new beginning, it's all I can do to say goodbye... And that I love you.

"Signed, Irvin Westinghouse.

Matt folded up the letter and placed it back in the envelope, "I don't know why Irvin writes so small, strains my eyes everything I read his handwriting."

"So he kept his word," said Tesla, "I told him what happened early in my life, and he found information of them. I didn't know why he kept this from me until he died, maybe it's for the sake of the moment."

Tesla removed his goggles and wiped his eyes with his wrists, "I may turn this into a win yet," he then turned towards Ash and Mark, "Thanks for helping me in the alley back there, I thought I was surely done for."

"Now," said Ash in a calm tone, "Where are you keeping our Pokémon?"

"Somewhere, I'll take you to them if you do this one favor for me. Just this one."

"Name it." said Mark.

"Get me a pardon to nullify the charges against me, and you'll be reunited with your Pokémon. That simple."

Tesla puts his goggles back on and pull the blanket up to his chin, "I'll know once it's on the news, it should be a big thing to the city."

The old Pikachu turned over onto his belly and began to rest, ending the conversation. Mark looked at Ash with a determined look on his face, "Let's go to City Hall, maybe we can-"

The front door suddenly unlocked and creaked open, Matt looked up and saw Kissinger come walking into the house. He didn't appear too happy, just not in the mood for anything, _Uh-oh_, Matt thought, _What is he going to do if he sees Tesla?_

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	21. Chapter XXI

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter XXI_

"Dad!" Mark got up and hugged his father as he came into the room.

"Hey Mark," said Kissinger, "How you're doing?"

"I'm good."

When Mark looked up at Kissinger, he saw the bruise on his son's cheek, "What happen to your cheek?"

"Long story," said Mark, "The short version is, we got Tesla."

"What?"

Kissinger saw the Pikachu in question on the couch, sleeping soundly. That was a surprise, Tesla seem to always turn up in the most unlikely places. Well, not always unlikely. His dad's house was a hub for Irvin and Tesla during their heyday. Maybe he came back because he wanted relief, "Is he doing alright?" Kissinger asked.

"He's doing alright Emmett," said Matt, "We cleaned him up and re-patched his wounds, he just fallen asleep."

Kissinger sat down on the couch and watch Tesla as his belly rise and fall as he breathes, "Has he said anything?"

"He talked a lot," said Ash, "He told us his story, he even told us he was 107 years old."

"A hundred and what!?" Kissinger asked in complete shock.

"He's been around a long time Emmett," said Matt, "Much longer than me."

"I can't believe he doesn't have any problems walking, around that age there's a good chance you could be bound to a wheel chair."

"He has a bad case of osteoarthritis, which threaten to cripple him. He didn't let that get in the way."

"Tesla was always Irvin's most powerful Pokémon, I didn't know he was that powerful."

"He has a strong will," said Ash, "He was at his limit when we found him, pleading for help."

Kissinger got up and stroke the back of Tesla's head, one of his ears twitch in response, "Is he going to make it?"

"Looks like it," said Matt, "Can you tell me why you shot him?"

Kissinger turned towards Matt, "He broke into my house, kidnapped my son's Pokémon, and killed another. I had every reason to be pissed because he came right into our house and-"

"You came right into his, which is why he came to yours. But you weren't the target, but you surely thrown more fuel into the fire."

"I didn't realize how he felt about all this until I shot him, the look in his eyes was filled with grief. He's depressed, he just wants to give up but not in the situation he was in."

"He still has our Pokémon," said Ash, "He won't turn them free until we can get him a pardon."

The room went silent for a moment, "I've asked the mayor for a pardon, he said that only the Governor of Faraday Island can give Tesla such a pardon. Do we have much time?"

"No, we don't have much time."

"Mark and Ash, come with me. We're going to go pay a visit to the governor."

"Can't you just schedule an appointment?" Matt asked.

"I have a few perks for being a police officer, I'll might get in to see the governor. Dad, keep an eye on Tesla until we get back."

"I will, son."

Tesla moaned under his breath, Emmett turned back towards him and saw him stir as he woke up, "I feel like a straw in a stack of needles."

He sniffed the air a couple of times than groaned, "Emmett, you've always been a cowboy since you were 4 years old. I've remembered that time you hopped onto my back in your limey birthday suit and _literally _pissed me off, and Irvin just stood there laughing. Absolutely no help at all, which was the usual love."

"I remember that," said Matt, "You tried to shake Emmett off but he hanged on tight, you were like a Bouffalant."

"He picked the best possible time. I had just drained out all of my electricity before he rode on me like a cowboy, I would had Westinghoused him if I still had a charge at the time."

Tesla turned and looked up with tired eyes, similar eyes that Kissinger seen right after he shot the old Pikachu, "I didn't have a gun and your son shot me," Tesla Westinghouse spoke in a calm, "I didn't have a gun and _you _shot me. If you don't want to kill me, then why shoot me in the first place?"

"Spur of the moment." Mark blurted out.

"The next time you ever shoot me, _please _aim for my head."

Hearing Tesla speak was surprising for Kissinger, since he never really heard the old Pikachu speak. Hearing his request though, was even more surprising, "You had it with life?" Emmett asked.

"I've lost my family I grew up with, I had it with life _before _Irvin took me in. If you had just-"

Officer Kissinger placed a hand on Tesla's forehead, stopping him mid-sentence, "We'll get you relief before you pass," he reassured, "Just sit tight and ride this through Tesla, it's finally going to end."

"I'll take your word for it, Irvin always liked you."

Tesla got back on his belly and tried to rest again, "Oh," he yelped, "My muscles are so stiff!"

"Need any pain killers?" Kissinger asked.

"Some vodka would do it."

"You drink?" Mark asked in shock.

"He does," said Matt, "Irvin often gets him drunk on some nights, because Tesla needed relief."

"I call it Happy Juice," said Tesla, "Irvin's last conversation was about me drinking down that six pack. You remember, Matt?"

"Yeah, I do."

"I drank all that beer in some small village as Irvin was doing, whatever. I was so wasted that I went out to the village well and regurgitated in it. For the final insult, I pooped in it. Me and Irvin were out of there in minutes, that was a fun time we had."

"A you..." Mark began to say, but he couldn't let it out. Ash just stood there with his mouth dropped, the two boy's expression were hilarious without a doubt."

"I only wish Irvin got to that part before he slumped behind the wheel," said Tesla, "It would make Irvin's demise more interesting."

"Tesla," said Kissinger, "Are you going to stay here for the time being?"

"I'm not going anywhere."

"Okay, Mark, Ash, come with me. Let's not waste anymore time."

**. . .**

Unbeknownst to the group, Mayor Dixon had already traveled out of Faraday City and beat them at the island's capital, Electron, named after the negative-charged particle that "orbit" around the atom. The name was appropriate for the small town of 10,000. Strangely enough that it was the capital of Faraday Island, and not the city that was named after it. It sits 40 kilometers away from Faraday City, somewhere deep in the back country of the Island.

The biggest building in the town just so happens to be the capital building, which sits in the shadow of Electron's City Hall. The massive capital looked like a fortress, at least 150 meters at its highest point it would feel intimidating to the average passerby. The size of the building, plus the isolation, should prevent it from getting a lot of attention from the outside world. It didn't. Dixon watched from the backseat of his limo as his driver tried to negotiate his way through a growing crowd of Tesla fans, all of which held signs demanding his pardon. Since Mayor Dixon's quick trip was unannounced, everyone was surprised as he pulled up at the capital building and stepped out.

Protected by his bodyguards, Dixon walked up the steps of the capital building and marched his way inside. He walked up to the main desk and politely asked for an emergency meeting with the governor, they agreed without asking questions. Dixon was lead up several flights of stairs and down a hall where he was led to an empty conference room, he sat back a chair as his bodyguards stood against the wall. After a few minutes, the door opened and the governor stepped on through.

Governor Andrew Norman was a sixty-something year old man with serious muscle, he stood 204cm tall, towering over Dixon's stout frame. He had a thick mustache and a serious look in his eye, serious enough to knock someone dead. Dixon relaxed as Norman sat across the table, then the two shook hands, "What is this about that made me cancel a couple of trips to Kirto?"

"The situation in my city and on your doorstep," said Dixon, "I'm sure you haven't ignored it."

"I keep getting calls from people who wanted me to pardon Tesla. I've watched the news and I have been briefed on this, the outlaw finally created an electrical storm," Norman raised a thick index finger and pointed it at Dixon, "Now, are you a supporter, or an opponent, to Tesla Westinghouse?"

"I support him," Dixon said flatly, trying to overcome Norman's opposing demeanor, "You and me had faced off against Irvin when we were young, we both lost to him thanks to Tesla. We all know how strong he really is."

"He defeated Donphan after unleashing several hard blows to him, the battle only lasted 45 seconds. Tesla's incredibly strong, it's amazing he's still around. Have you called in the army yet?"

"No, I don't wish to. I just came here and ask for you to pardon Tesla."

"Why?" Norman asked bluntly.

"He just wants to relax," said Dixon, "He doesn't wanna battle anymore. The only reason why he's hunted by the law is because of-"

"The trainers that tried to catch him. Yes, I know."

"Will you give him a pardon?"

Norman sat there for a few seconds and considered the thought, "I'll give him a pardon if he can do this one thing."

"What will it be?"

Norman told Dixon his offer, it made the mayor's blood freeze.

**. . .**

"Wow," said Ash as he gazed at the capital building looming over the horizon, "That's huge."

"Sure is," said Mark, "No wonder they put the capital out here."

The bus ride to Electron was a quick trip, there weren't too many people on board and it didn't have a funny smell. Kissinger sat in the seat in front alone, staring at the massive capital building. Ash wondered why the island's government built such a massive structure to be their capital in the middle of a small town, maybe it was because of political events that could spiral out of control. That doesn't seem likely when he saw a small group of protestors heading down the sidewalk towards the direction they were headed. This eliminates any doubt that the governor was ignoring the events occurring on his island, and on the main land.

When they reached the bus stop, the group got out and walked over towards the capital where a large group of people were trying to swarm someone walking over to his limo, "Wait," said Kissinger, "That's the mayor!"

Kissinger ran up towards the crowd, since he was in uniform the crowd backed away as he approached Dixon, "Kissinger," he said, "I'm surprised to see you here."

"Something turned up," said Kissinger, "We're about to see the governor, but it looks like you've beat me too it."

Dixon glanced at Mark and Ash who were coming up from behind, "Is that your son Mark in the tank top?"

"Yeah," said Kissinger, "Anyway, we need to speak somewhere private."

"I know just the place."

**. . .**

_I definitely know the place well._ Mayor Dixon thought as he sat back in his chair.

Somewhere back in Faraday City was Dixon's old apartment. Kissinger, his son, and his friend sat in the chairs that surrounded the old round table. The three room apartment was old, deteriorated, and pretty much well used. The brown walls and carpet helped hide the stains, which begged to be scene by human eyes. With the blinds drawn, the only source of light came from a single CFL bulb that dangled over the wooden table. The group got settled in as the mayor's bodyguards kept watch outside for any anomalies.

"My apartment scene better days," said Dixon, "It used to belong to my cousin, now he lives somewhere in the back country."

"Does he ever clean this place?" Mark asked.

"No, but it's a good place to have such secret meetings. The smell alone should repel the curious to a comfortable distance. Now, what do you have for me?"

"We have Tesla," said Kissinger, "He had been tamed and is willing to cooperate, he asked us to get him a pardon because he wants to start a new life."

"You have Tesla, well he's in luck. The governor has agreed to pardon Tesla."

"Yes!" said Mark and Ash in unison.

"But there's a catch."

Ash and Mark developed a confused look on their face, "What?" Ash asked.

"He wants Tesla to battle in a public Pokémon match, in front of a huge crowd, with the police standing by."

"Why?" Kissinger asked.

"Tesla's a legend, he never lost a single Pokémon battle. It has been a long time since he had such a battle, the governor wanted to see if he's still willing to fight after all this time."

"Tesla's in no shape to battle," said Mark, "He's been shot twice and he doesn't have much-"

"There's no way around this boy, either Tesla battles or he's done for."

"So if he wins," said Ash, "He'll get a pardon."

"Yes." said Dixon.

"If he lose..."

"He'll be arrested on the spot, if he resists he'll be shot. Either way, Tesla's life would end and we loose another legend in the world. The last I heard, there aren't too many left. I wish I can make the process simpler, but I can't. It's good to know that he'll have a lot of people supporting him through this, it's always great to see an old pro to work his strength into something he's good at doing."

There was silence within the group for a few seconds, Kissinger sighed and stood up, "Thanks for all your help Dixon," said Kissinger as he and the mayor shook hands, "We'll tell Tesla the news, though he might not be so thrilled about it."

"Now if anyone asks," said the mayor, "We never had this discussion."

"This never happened."

"Oh," said Ash, "Where would the battle take place?"

"The largest park in the city," said Dixon, "Where else?"

"Who will Tesla be battling?"

"That's up for you to decide."

**. . .**

Tesla couldn't help as he dug his hand into the peanut butter jar and shoved a glob of it into his mouth. It has been so long since the last time he had peanut butter, or any other good food for that matter. Normally for food, he would have some form of civility and dignity when eating. But not peanut butter, he let's himself be all messy when it comes down to it. What's even better was that the peanut butter was super chunky, and the jar was big.

With his belly and taste buds feeling happy and frisky, Tesla sat back and watched the news. Well, somewhat watching the news as the peanut butter jar was the main focus of his attention. Within 10 minutes from opening it, Tesla ate all the peanut butter inside the jar, _Wow_, he let out a satisfying smile as he sat back, _That's the good stuff, at least I still have my __appetite._

Tesla got up and walked on his hind legs to the bathroom, he hopped onto the counter and turned on the faucet until the hot water started running. He scrubbed the peanut butter off his hands with soap before wiping his mouth clean, after making sure he got any remaining peanut butter off his hands he grabbed a nearby towel and dried himself off. When Tesla looked at himself in the mirror, he froze for a moment.

He didn't change much, but the goggles were quite new. Tesla noticed it had small yellow lighting bolts on each side of the strap, _How appropriate_. He frowned, he wasn't a Pokémon with a thing for decoration.

Tesla managed to catch glimpses of his reflection on occasion, but he hadn't looked at himself properly in 20 years. He noticed how youthful he looked on the outside, his fur was bright yellow and healthy and his eyes seem to twinkle a bit. But on the inside, Tesla felt his cells breaking down. He was surprised that, being 107 years old, that he hadn't been crippled by age yet. Sometimes Tesla doesn't know his own strength or his limits, he could get so strong that he can annihilate an entire continent, _Or split the world in two_. He thought.

Of course, he's not that insane to pull that stunt anyway.

He unveiled his teeth, it wasn't a pretty sight. The enamel on each tooth was rotten, either tan or a brown color. All of his canine teeth were gone, either worn down or knocked out from previous Pokémon battles. Old age and abuse had rotten his teeth, amazing it didn't feel painful to him at all. Tesla closed his mouth and thought for a moment, maybe after this he would get a dentist to fix his mouth up. Tooth decay isn't something that should be ignored, but it can wait.

Tesla returned to the living room and crawled back onto the couch. There it was, on the TV. The bottom of the screen says _Tesla May Get Pardon If Wins Pokémon Battle_.

_I'll be damned_, Tesla thought as he stared at the screen, _So much for retirement_.

The front door creaked open and Kissinger, Mark, and Ash came through, "You doing alright Tesla?" Ash asked.

"Yeah," said Tesla, "I heard about your success on the TV, as you can see."

Tesla picked up the remote and turned it off, "But I wanna hear your side of the story."

"It was Mayor Dixon who proposed the pardon," said Kissinger, "We just met up with him and he told us that you must win a Pokémon battle in the largest park in Faraday City in order to get a pardon, and it must be public with the police on scene."

"Who will I be battling?"

"He said we can battle anyone."

Tesla looked away for a moment, then returned his attention to Ash and Mark, "Well guys, you did your best. I'm not taking a risk and going out there without freeing your Pokémon, if I fail then it's over. I guess I trust you enough to give you back your Pokémon back, a bond with a trainer and their Pokémon cannot be severed that easily."

Mark picked up Tesla and gave him a big hug, "Thank you, thank you, Tesla!"

"Please don't crush me with kindness." said Tesla as he struggled for breathing room.

"Oh," Mark released Tesla and he drop back on to the couch, "Sorry."

Tesla stretched his limbs, letting out audible pops and cracks in his joints and back, "Does anyone have a ride?"

"My car is in the shop," said Kissinger, "Because of the windshield-"

"I know what happened to the Axew," said Tesla, "His trainer was irresponsible, just careless. Lots of love with no caution doesn't mix very well. Anyway, your father is sleeping. Just take his car, he won't mind. I recall back in the old days where me and Irvin were to steal his car on the weekends for joy riding, almost crashed it a few times."

"What did he say?" Kissinger asked.

"He was none the wiser, but I'm sure he'll say something since Irvin taught me how to drive. The trick is only just reaching the petals-"

"Save the story, I'll get the keys."

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	22. Chapter XXII

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter XXII_

"Okay," said Tesla, "It's around here somewhere."

"We've been out here for 20 minutes," said Mark, "How far is it?"

"Not to far, this wide open grass land that borders the forest tends to have the best hiding places. After our first encounter, I spent the time to make this safehouse. Good thing I did, since you guys came back with bigger guns."

"And you had bigger traps." Kissinger added.

"I heard about what happened to Trent, stuff like this happen if you poke around places where you shouldn't be poking around. The news said that you got through my electric fence, how did you do that?"

"We used Swoobats to knock out the generators," explained Kissinger, "If you were around, they would've found you."

"And it would lead to a dramatic final stand that will create a blood bath, I wouldn't be able to get out of there with those Swoobats flying around. Crikey, I hate Swoobats."

Tesla lead the group down the dirt trail before making a detour, with the city at the horizon with the sun heading towards it, the border to the country side was beautiful beyond doubt, "In the bad times when I'm feeling down," said Tesla, "I would sit down and watch the sun set. It has a calm aura to it, helps me keep on my feet when I'm on the run."

"I can see why." said Ash.

"Oh Ash. Just for the record, I had checked your background."

Ash became confused, "You had?"

"Same place where you checked my background," said Tesla, "I found a lot of interesting stuff about you, especially how you first met your Pikachu. I couldn't stop laughing when I saw you get shocked by him, awhile you're in your pajamas. Kinda reminds me of bonding with Irvin, it took a severed hand for me to open my heart to him. Unlike your past Ash, me and Irvin got into some things that aren't really swell."

"Like what?"

"You heard of the criminal organization called Team Rocket?"

"I had a lot of trouble with them during my journey, mostly with the same members."

"Irvin was a member, which makes me a member as well."

"Damn," said Mark, "Were you associated with Team Rocket?"

"Yeah, back when Irvin was alive. The organization opened up a black market where we can get some impressive toys and firepower, it also revealed a sinister Pokémon business scheme. I've seen several Pokémon plucked from the wild or from other trainers and stuffed into really small cages, then shipped out to some legitimate places like Pokémon Laboratories for hard cash."

"That's horrible." said Ash.

"As bad as it was, I wound up learning the trade. It soon became a habit, which is why I continue it in my outlaw years. Irvin and I never approved, but we did nothing since the business was for good _and _evil intentions. Ever since Irvin died, all connections with Team Rocket were cut. Now the organization is only good for getting guns, I even know several caches in many parts of the world that I can get some. Hopefully I don't need them."

"Were you a bad Pokémon?"

"Honestly Ash, I couldn't tell. I was born in the right conditions, but everything became corrupted when I wound up in human captivity. Before, I couldn't figure out what's right and what's wrong, and even when I finally figured it all out it didn't mean anything. Maybe this is what happens to Pokémon when they follow orders and commands with their trainers for too long, I'm just not so sure."

"You're a century old," said Mark, "How can you not figure it out?"

Tesla glared at him, "I was trained to battle and survive, not how to live my life. Like I said before, it's all work and no play in the Westinghouse years. At least Irvin apologized, maybe I can rest in peace when my time comes."

As the group approach a small hill that sits on the edge of the forest, Tesla stopped the group, "Look up ahead, right where I'm pointing. Do you see anything out of the ordinary."

"No," said Ash, "I don't see anything suspicious."

"Nothing's standing out," said Kissinger, "Why, what's up there?"

"We've just arrived at the safehouse," said Tesla, "Since you can't see it, then my trainer's lessons had paid off."

"Don't tell me," said Mark, "It's an illusion."

"Designed to trick human brains," said Tesla, "Though you can never escape the perception of a well-trained Pokémon. Now, wait here. This should be a moment."

Tesla ran on all fours towards the safehouse as the group stood back, he removed the camouflage net covering the entrance and crawled inside. Pikachu and Emolga sat there in the cage, their eyes showed hunger and boredom. Raichu seemed to be in a better condition, but in a lesser degree. Tesla approached Pikachu and Emolga's cage and grabbed on to one of the bars, then popped it out in one thrust. The two Pokémon's eyes lit up as Tesla tossed the bar onto the floor before removing two bars from Raichu's cage, he tossed those on the floor and opened up the box containing Snivy. She fell out of the box, she squint her eyes as she struggled to see in the sudden bright light.

"It's your lucky day guys," said Tesla as he pulled Snivy's own vines off of her, "There's some people I want you to meet outside."

"Pika?" Pikachu asked who it was.

"Go out there and find out."

"Snivy." grumbled Snivy as she retracted her vines.

She got up on her feet and stretched her muscles, sore and stiff from not moving much. After loosening up, Snivy nodded, signaling she was ready, "Come on," said Tesla, "We don't have all day."

Tesla opened up a box and pulled out two Poké balls, "I best give these back to the owner," he said, "I bet she missed them a lot."

When he crawled out of the safehouse, the other Pokémon followed behind. They squint their eyes from the ambient sunlight, but their eyes quickly adapt. Just in time to see their loved ones, "Pikachu!" cried Ash.

"Pika P!" cried Pikachu.

He ran straight for Ash and jumped into his arms, Emolga quickly ran towards Mark and he picked him up, "Emolga," he cried, "Your safe!"

"Emolga." Emolga sobbed as he snuggled against his trainer's side.

Snivy saw that Ash didn't noticed her, and so stretched out a vine and slapped him across the face. Ash stumbled back, nearly dropping Pikachu in the process, "Ow!" he cried.

"Snivy!" Snivy barked.

"Oh, Snivy!"

Snivy approached nonchalantly and Ash picked her up with a free arm, "I almost forgotten about you!" he said.

"Snivy." she grumbled.

"She said _Yeah right_." Tesla translated, "If you want, I can translate your Pokémon's words so their message can get across clearer."

"Thanks for the offer," said Ash, "I'll manage."

"Oh Mark," said Tesla, "Here's your friends Poké balls, I don't know where she lives but here. And here's your friend's Raichu, hopefully I don't have to hear him rant anymore."

"Raichu." Raichu shrugged it off.

"Sure tubby," said Tesla sarcastically, "Sure."

"Oh damn Emolga," said Mark as he examined one of Emolga's arms, "You really need a bath."

"Mark," said Tesla, "You best take Emolga to the Pokémon Center, cause I think I found something about him that you need to know."

Mark's smile dropped as he tightened his hold around Emolga, "What did you find, is it harmful?"

"No, nothing wrong with him except the fleas. Just give him a blood test, have them check a few things about his character."

"Um... I don't know what you mean, but okay."

"Before you do that, take me back to Matt's place. I prefer to sleep indoors tonight."

**. . .**

The trip to the Pokémon Center was anything but smooth. Even with all the Pokémon Centers on Faraday Island connected, it did little but spread the chaos of the protests in an even fashion. Already overcrowded with Pokémon coming in from the early days of the insane multi-battles, the Faraday City Pokémon Hospital locked their doors and denied any more help in treating Pokémon. After Tesla made his recent appearance, the protestors at the front of the Pokémon Center began to become more aggressive.

They held up newly crafted signs saying to help heal their Pokémon, Cabot's Axew became the mascot of this branch of the Tesla protest movement. The nurses and doctors inside began to draw the blinds shut when a protestor began holding up a large poster of the dead Axew with its head smashed in. Police were soon called in to clear the crowd, causing trainers to call out their Pokémon to drive them back. Many of these Pokémon were already injured from the Pokémon protest battles, but that doesn't stop them from unleashing serious punishment.

Tear gas started spewing and rubber bullets started flying. Many police officers began multiple arrests on the spot, the protestors fell back down the street where they set up a crude barricade. That spot happened to be a crucial 4-way stop light in Faraday City, which prevented some food and consumer trucks access. Stores closed early in the night, and the lootings began. Stretched to the limit, the FCPD barely got half the situation under control.

As riots clash with police from above, the secured tunnels that linked the Pokémon Centers of Faraday Island together remain clear. It just so happened that Kissinger knew how to access the tunnels, probably being another perk on being a police officer. Ash and Mark carried Pikachu, Emolga, Raichu, and Snivy into the tunnel and climbed up a stairwell, eventually getting into the Pokémon center.

What they found inside was bad, the hallways were crowded with injured Pokémon. Many were still placed on the gurneys they came in with, and most had simple injuries. Obviously the worst cases were being dealt with first, but there's no telling how many there are. The group made their way through the hall, passing by medical personnel whose eyes were in a cold blank stare. Somewhere near the lobby, they found Nurse Joy, sitting on a chair trying her best to cope with the overburdened of Pokémon who needed help.

"Nurse Joy," said Kissinger, "You alright?"

Nurse Joy looked up, her eyes were full of tears, "Should you be out calming the crowds?" she referred to the riots outside.

"I got a more important task right now," said Kissinger, "I need your help Nurse Joy."

Her face changed from confusion to recognition, "Wait, you're the cop who ran the police raid on Tesla... And you shot him!"

"And now I have him, he's in a safe place. We're here because Tesla just let some Pokémon go. We need to clean them up with fleas and get them some proper food."

"Please Nurse Joy," said Mark, "Think of this as a break from what's going on."

"Smart move, Mark." Ash whispered into his ear.

Nurse Joy stood up and nod, "Half the staff here, including the supervisor, are out in the medical fields. No one would notice if I help out your Pokémon."

With that, Nurse Joy took the group's Pokémon and gave them a good flea bath. It took at least an hour to rid them of fleas, Ash looked at the clock and saw it was 11PM. He wondered to himself why he isn't tired yet. Proper food were given to the Pokémon. They quickly gobbled them up, almost as fast as the nurse would give them. Ash scratched Pikachu's head, he couldn't stop cooing as his trainer scratched the hard to reach spots. With fingers dampened from Pikachu's slightly wet fur, Ash brushed them off on his pants and smiled. It was a good feeling to be reunited with his Pokémon, especially when it had a brief moment with death.

"You like the Pokémon food, Emolga?" Mark asked.

Emolga had a disgusted face. He shook his head, even though he cleaned out the entire bowl, "Oh, um Nurse Joy?"

"Yes Mark?" Nurse Joy answered.

"Tesla discovered something about Emolga, about his character."

"What do you mean about his character?"

"I don't know, Tesla didn't say. All he said was to do a simple blood test and check him about his background, I honestly don't know what I'm asking but can you please check him and see if you can find anything worth knowing?"

"Sure."

Nurse Joy picked up Emolga and took him to a weight scale, after she weighed him Nurse Joy pricked Emolga's finger and took a blood sample. Amazingly Emolga didn't cry, but Ash can tell that he was holding back his tears. Nurse Joy placed the blood sample into the computer and it began to analyzed it, within a few seconds a whole host of basic and additional information came up on the screen, "No disease of some sort," said Nurse Joy, "Emolga is quite healthy from the analysis."

"Let's see."

Nurse Joy stepped aside and Mark took one good look on the computer, after a few seconds his jaw dropped. Mark staggered backward, nearly losing his balance in the process,

"I am dumber than a bag of hammers." he managed to say before collapsing on to the floor.

"Mark," cried Kissinger as he quickly come to his aid, "Holy crap, he passed out cold."

"Why?" Nurse joy asked.

As Nurse Joy and Kissinger try to get Mark up on a chair, Ash took a look on the computer. He scanned over the basic information for a few seconds until his eyes stopped around the gender area, "I think I found it."

Nurse Joy and Kissinger stood up and returned their attention back onto the computer screen, "What did you find?"

Ash pointed at the gender bar, "Emolga's a _girl_."

Everybody turned their attention on Emolga, who just sat there on the scale staring at Mark. After a few seconds, "she" began to laugh. Pikachu and Raichu soon began laughing, and then everyone began laughing altogether. Snivy just walked up to the wall and started hitting her head against it, unable to take in anymore stupidity.

**. . .**

"So what's going on out there?" Tesla asked as the group came back from the Pokémon Center.

"Everybody's just nuts," said Kissinger, "It's hard to tell who's side anyone's on anymore."

Tesla watched as Mark and Ash carried an unconscious Mark into the room and placed him on the couch, Pikachu, Emolga, and Raichu got a seat on the other couch as Snivy sat on the floor, far away from the group as possible, "So did you found out that Emolga's a female?" Tesla asked with a smirk on his face.

Ash's eyes went big, "You _knew_!?"

"Of course I knew, I took one good look into her eyes and discovered her gender. I thought you didn't trust me enough to tell you such news. Besides, an official answer always hits home."

"I agree." said Kissinger.

"Now, how are your Pokémon doing?"

"They're well washed and fed," said Ash, "But for the other Pokémon in the Pokémon Center..."

"Save it Ash," said Tesla, "We don't need any more sorrow right now."

"Should you be resting for your battle?"

"Well Ash, I was sleeping until you came in here with all that noise."

"But the TV's on."

"Fine, be that way," Tesla grabbed the remote and turned off the TV, "Well, goodnight."

"Goodnight."

Ash pulled out a Poké ball and aimed it at Snivy, "Snivy, return."

Snivy was quickly recalled without hassle, when she returned to her Poké ball Ash tucked it away, "Well, night Kissinger."

"Goodnight Ash," said Kissinger, "Thanks for all the help you did for us."

As Kissinger heads into a back room, Ash returned his attention to Tesla and saw he fell back asleep in his usual spot. Emolga got off the couch and crawled up next to her unconscious trainer, who was muttering in his sleep. As Emolga got settled in, Raichu just slumped over on the couch and fell asleep, almost as fast as Tesla did.

Ash picked up Pikachu and hugged him tight, "It's great to have you back Pikachu." he said, almost letting out some tears.

"Pikachu." Pikachu cooed as he hugged him back.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	23. Chapter XXIII

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter XXIII_

The day started off alright, Kissinger served pancakes for breakfast at the small dining room. Ash and Matt got up and saw what's cooking in the kitchen, they all took a seat and grabbed a plate. As they ate, Pikachu, Raichu, and Emolga were roused from their slumber and walked over to the kitchen. They all got a seat as Matt gave Pikachu and Raichu Pokémon food, Emolga simply got some pancakes and chowed them down. He was surprised by their presence but quickly remembered that Tesla released them, he sat back down and ate his pancakes without saying a word.

"So how's everybody's morning?" Kissinger asked.

"Good," said Ash, "Though I kept hearing someone snoring loudly for half the night."

"Tesla's a heavy sleeper," said Matt, "It's probably him, sometimes he snores, sometimes he doesn't, I couldn't figure out why."

"He and Mark's still asleep?"

"Yeah," said Kissinger, "It was a tough day yesterday."

"It just happened so fast," noted Ash, "I mean, really fast."

"So what did you do awhile I was in bed?" Matt asked.

"We got our Pokémon back." said Ash.

"I can see that." said Matt.

"Pikachu." muttered Pikachu as he popped another brown pellet into his mouth.

"We also paid a visit to the Faraday City Pokémon Hospital," said Kissinger, "The Pokémon Center is just chaos, we had to get in through the tunnels since their were rioting in the street. Once inside, we got the nurse to clean up Ash and Mark's Pokémon and get them fed. We also discovered that Emolga is a girl awhile we're there."

"How did Mark take the news?"

Kissinger looked at his father, "He passed out on the floor, he's been sleeping ever since."

Matt let out a laugh and sighed, "Well, that cleared things up."

After a few minutes of silence, the group heard someone stir in the living room. Mark came walking into the kitchen, with a hand pressing against the side of his head, "What just happened," he asked, "What did I missed?"

"You missed nothing, son," said Kissinger, "You passed out from finding out that Emolga's a girl."

"A girl... Maybe that explains why _she_ tries to hump my leg at times."

Kissinger's jaw dropped, "What?"

"Happens once a month," said Mark, "Emolga just hops right on my lower leg and tries to hump. It's always hilarious to see her fuss when I pull her away, she just pout like a two year old a while jumping up and down. Don't you Emolga?"

Emolga snickered, "Emolga." she muttered before shoving an entire pancake into her mouth.

"I never heard such a case before." said Ash.

"Pika." Pikachu added with an unsure tone.

Mark sat down at the table and grabbed a plate, then added a couple of pancakes to it, "So what's the plan for today?"

"The plan," said a slightly hoarse voice behind them, "Is to put an end to this."

Everyone turned towards the living room and saw Tesla standing on his hind legs, he had a determined look on his face with strong confidence, "Once I get this pardon done, I may finally put the past behind me."

"What are you going to do once you get the pardon?" Kissinger asked.

"Leave this island," said Tesla, "I had it with Faraday Island and its cities, it's best that I leave the island and get out of many people's lives."

Tesla took a seat at the table and loaded a plate with pancakes, "It has been awhile since I had a proper breakfast," he said as he stuffed his face with a pancake, he chewed it up for a few seconds before swallowing, "Oh that's good stuff, beats garbage any day."

"You don't eat Pokémon food?" Ash asked.

"Never had any in my entire life," said Tesla, "It took a while for the scientists at the Pokémon Lab to figure that one out, I had to go at least three days without eating to send the message."

"Was it hard?" Mark asked.

Tesla shoved another pancake into his mouth and ate it through, "No, I only ate fruits and some vegetables. When Irvin came along, his cooking was excellent. He added a bit of meat to it, some form of jerky I think. Eating that kind of protein makes my day, and I soon discovered how vital it became."

He pointed to his head, "After I made the mental leap, I discovered I was more hungry than usual. I couldn't perform that stunt I did in the Pre-Westinghouse days again, and I also discover that fruits and vegetables weren't enough. Increased intelligence requires more energy for such processing power, you have any idea how much energy it takes for having an increased thinking load?"

"No."

"Lots, I'm amazed I'm able to live off of little food during the Post-Westinghouse years. A little trick I used to help with this problem is sleep, I spend most of the day and night sleeping since I don't have the energy to do anything else."

"No wonder you never appear on most days." said Kissinger.

"Yup."

When everyone was done eating, Mark got everyone's plates and washed them at the sink. Everyone head back to the living room and turned on the TV, on Faraday City News the situation showed that things wasn't getting any better, "20 more Pokémon and 35 trainers had died," Tesla read the title of the news report out loud, "Hundreds more injured awhile several more were arrested."

Tesla sat back in the couch and sighed, "Might as well not wait any longer, the Pokémon Battle will go down today for sure."

"But your hurt," said Kissinger, "Should you wait a while for you to recover?"

"He's right, Tesla." advised Ash.

Tesla put his hand to his chest, "This old body received far worse injuries in the past, but they didn't keep me down. I may not be at my prime but I still have enough strength left for a dramatic final stand, I bet the police will gun me down once I'm defeated, they do have orders to shoot to kill. It would be an appropriate end to my life, which would help complete my reputation as a legend."

"You seemed quite confident about this." said Kissinger.

"If my life is coming to an end, I prefer it would be worth watching. I'm no boring old fart, I had quite an adventure in my life. It could be graphic in all, but I'll inspire millions."

"I don't know what to say," said Ash, "Your just going to throw your life away like that?"

Tesla frowned and glared at Ash, "Ash, if you know that your time is coming, it's best not to resist. You're better off embracing it."

The old Pikachu then turned his attention to Kissinger, "K, you have your cell phone on you?"

"Yeah." said Kissinger.

"Let me burrow it, I need to call someone."

**. . .**

The rioting that spread across Faraday City and the neighboring towns were on top of Mayor Dixon's mind. The city's financial reserves were dropping at an astounding rate, before the protest the reserves hovered around 250 million dollars. Now they dropped to 55 million. Most of the money were spent trying to beef up security and fund the damages caused by the protestors, but it wasn't enough. Soon the city will become bankrupt in a few days in the rioting will continue, that would force several services to go unfunded and taxes would increase. Not a good combination in times like this.

He doesn't even know where to begin. His desk was covered in bills, reports, and intel about the riots. Dixon picked up one file and scanned it, the report had a lot of text in big paragraphs, "Where did this came from?" he asked himself as he sat it aside.

Somewhere on the desk, the office phone began to ring. Mayor Dixon removed some papers and uncovered it, he picked it up and held it to his ear, "Mayor Dixon here."

"Hey Jimmy," said the voice of an elderly gentlemen, "It's been a while since we last met. Was it 40 years ago?"

Dixon went confused, _Who the? _"Do I know you?"

"I sure hope you do, since I'm Irvin's walking Pokémon."

The mayor soon figured out who he's talking to, "Tesla?"

"The one and only."

"Holy crap, so the rumor that you can speak is-"

"And so is not the rumor that I'm a grumpy stubborn Pokémon." Tesla said bluntly into Dixon's ear.

"Um, sorry. Well, why you called?"

"According to Emmett Kissinger," began Tesla, "You said to go to the largest park in Faraday City for a Pokémon Battle, with the police on sight. Correct?"

"Yes, yes I did."

"Schedule that for noon today."

"I can do that Tesla."

"And the person I'll be battling can be anyone, right?"

"True."

"Make it a Pokémon trainer that has moderate experience, not too pro, not too noob. Have that trainer use a Pokémon that can unleash serious punishment, but make sure that Pokémon can help provide a good show for Faraday Island's citizens."

Dixon wrote down Tesla's recommendations, "Okay, I got it."

"I got more in store Jimmy, I cannot say them over the phone. Who's going to supervise the SWAT team throughout the battle?"

"Lieutenant Kelly."

"Bring him with you to the park around 11AM, there are some things we need to discuss regarding if I win or loose this battle. Either way, you can be sure I won't be around in Faraday Island anymore."

Both lines went silent for a moment, "Tesla," said Mayor Dixon, "It'll be really sad to see you go."

"It was sad when Irvin passed. Just for the record, he knew what was going to become of me beforehand. I read his will, he knows my fate."

"I'll see you in the park then Tesla."

"Just make sure there's a big crowd, I wanna see the look on everyone's face either if I win or lose. I'll see you then."

The line went dead, Dixon placed the phone back on to the receiver and thought for the moment, _Kissinger's telling the truth after all, this isn't going to be pretty_.

**. . .**

Sitting in the bare white cell, Cabot didn't know what to do next. He might lose his job, his apartment, and much more. He already lost his Axew, managing to crash into a cop car and die on the spot. Cabot stared at the white wall and examined its details. It was made of white small tiles, something normally found in the bathroom. It was so bright underneath the florescent lights that it nearly blinded him, but Cabot just shrugged it off. It felt like he was a lab rat, ready to succumb to another cruel experiment.

_How did I get myself into this mess? _He thought.

He already heard the charges and a lot of people saw it. He could go to prison for 20 or more something years for this. Killing a Pokémon under Faraday Island law wasn't the equivalent in murdering a human child, but it was bad enough. It was 2nd degree murder, not 1st degree. Completely unintentional. That was how it played out. Cabot shook his head, this was going on everywhere in Faraday City. All because of this yellow rodent whose popularity gotten the better of this city. Is he doing this to people, or just attracting the extreme? What a question that needs to be answered.

The heavy metal door's latch clicked open and the door opened up, Cabot saw a couple of police officers walked in, "Come with us." the one who stepped through said.

Cabot replied with no question, were they going to interrogate him? Maybe use something for court, best to give them all they want. His Pokémon had been confiscated, he was on his own in this one. The police led Cabot to another room at the other side of the police department, it was an interrogating room alright. Cabot sit in a chair as the officer who led him sat in the other, the officer who accompanied them both stood at the door as if he was guarding it.

"My name's Lieutenant Kelly," said the interrogator, "We got a proposition we wanna do with you."

Cabot was confused, "What kind of proposition?"

"We need a trainer who had moderate experience with Pokémon at a similar level, you fit the bill just nice. The mayor will pay your bail if you do this one thing for us, though it may be a bit personal for you and the rest of the world."

"What do I need to do?"

"We want you to battle Tesla Westinghouse."

One of Cabot's eyebrows shot up, "Who?"

"You're going to battle the Legendary Pikachu," said Kelly again, "All you have to do is battle Tesla, no matter that you win or lose. Mayor Dixon will let you off the hook, but if you slack off you head to prison to finish off that sentence."

"So, why do I have to battle Tesla?"

"You're a, _representative_, of the protestors out there. Not to supportive, and not opposing either. Just somewhere in the middle that doesn't care about Tesla, only just want a piece of the action. Battle Tesla, you get to go home. That simple."

Cabot thought about it for a moment. What Kelly just explained was pretty much the reason why he came here to Faraday City in the first place. He wanted a piece of the action, and he was going to get it. But this was too much. He might achieve international fame with this battle, might as well become a public speaker and search for a new walking Pokémon. It was time for him to go back to school.

"Okay," said Cabot, "I'll do it."

**. . .**

The park cover a vast distance in the city, the park grounds had nicely trimmed grass and a few patches of bushes and trees in every visible direction. Throughout the protest, the park used to be a hotbed for the majority of the Pokémon Battles occurring here. All sorts of special attacks had destroyed parts of the ground, either leaving craters or streaks of burnt grass. Right now, there were no Pokémon battles. All the Pokémon Battles that contained more than 3 Pokémon were canceled, set aside permanently for a single one on one match.

A crowd that seemed to make up at least half the city's population had gathered near a section of the park where the battle was going to take place. The FCPD SWAT team had set up shop nearby, their submachine guns had been cleaned and loaded before hand, ready to be fired when commanded. The crowd of protestors held up signs in support for Tesla, yet there was not a single sign that oppose him. Reporters from CNN and Faraday City News had set up several cameras, some were on the ground pointed at the battlefield, others were mounted on the window sills and rooftops of buildings for a better view. People as far as Kanto tuned into their TVs or access the YouTube Live feed to watch the historical battle as it unfold.

Nurse Joy sat in a chair near the arena, somewhere in a spot where she would have no trouble seeing the battlefield. Recalling that Tesla's powerful enough to send Pokémon to the Pokémon Center for horrific injuries, she was called into the area to serve as insurance, just in case any Pokémon got hurt for that matter. She took a deep breath and sighed, her heart was already racing because she knew this won't end well.

All cameras zoomed in when Tesla appeared, walking between Kissinger's family and close friends. Not too many people were paying attention at first, but for those who are watching the battle on digital media sat still as Tesla's picture engulfs their TV and computer screen. For fans who were old enough to remember Irvin's heydays, they saw that Tesla's expression hadn't changed. They knew he was old, but they don't have an exact estimate. Seeing his two gunshot wounds all bandaged up, they wondered if he was still able to perform in a proper Pokémon Battle.

**. . .**

"That's a big crowd," said Ash as he watched the small flashes of light coming from several dozen cameras, "There could be more watching on TV."

"Great," said Tesla, "Just great, I just hate big crowds. Well, they'll get what's coming for them."

The SWAT team stood by in full gear, some were gazing out in the crowd awhile others had their eyes locked on Tesla. The old Pikachu didn't look in their direction, as if they weren't there. His eyes were focused instead on Mayor Dixon and Lieutenant Kelly as they approach, Tesla stood on his hind legs and stepped forward, "You've sure changed a lot since the last time we've met Jimmy."

"And you changed little," said Dixon, "I still can't believe you can speak human language."

"It takes a great mental leap to speak human words, maybe there's a lot more in stake than everyone had realized."

"What do you mean?" Kelly asked.

"I'm pretty much one of the few non-Legendary Pokémon who can speak, but that's not all. I'm also the world's oldest Pikachu, have the highest IQ, and never lost a single battle. I'm a hero, and an outlaw. I've inspired millions of humans and Pokémon into the simple game we all played when we were young. Thank Irvin that my Pokémon Battle career is now over."

"How old are you?" Dixon asked.

"I'm 107 years old, I didn't know that I was strong enough to live this long until I've reached this age. Not to many Pikachus make it to the age of 30 in the wild, that I do know."

"Amazing that you're able to elude the police for so long."

"I can't outrun them forever, in fact I have a few request for either when I win or loose this battle."

"Name it."

"I prefer everyone but you and Kelly back away, since this is private."

Everyone stepped far enough away that they were out of earshot, Ash watched as Tesla talked to both men on his proposals. He wondered what it was when he saw both men's faces go pale, "What is Tesla planning?" Mark asked.

"Pika pika?" added Pikachu.

"I don't know," said Ash, "But it clearly isn't going to be good."

"Normally Irvin makes the deals," said Matt, "He often talks to his opponents in private about who get's what and how, must be a habit Tesla picked up from him since he was there when they made the deals."

"Mark!" cried a voice.

Ash turned around and saw Henry and Carley come running up, "You got Emolga back!" she cheered as she gave Mark a hug.

"Emolga." Emolga blushed.

"And I discovered that Emolga's a girl," said Mark, "I handled that news quite well."

"A girl," Carley asked in surprise, "You didn't know Emolga's gender?"

"No, it kinda stings all over because of the things she do that... You don't need to know all that, but here," Mark handed the Poké balls containing Flaffy and Luxio, "Here's your Pokémon, I'm not sure how they're doing since I didn't check them. All I know is that Tesla didn't hurt them or anything."

Carley took the Poké balls and held them close to her chest, "Thank you, you're always such a gentlemen... On occasion."

"Yeah," Mark smiled, "Runs in the family."

"Raichu," cried Henry as he picked Raichu off the ground, "I'm glad you're okay buddy!"

"Raichu!" Raichu hugged his trainer tightly.

"Pika." Pikachu cooed as he awed at the sight of trainer and Pokémon being reunited to each other.

Ash turned back towards Tesla and saw him approach, Mayor Dixon and Kelly returned to the SWAT team where they said a few words. When the two men walked away, the SWAT team's faces were white with shock, "Well that's taken care of." said Tesla.

"What did you three talked about?" Ash asked.

"None of your concern," said Tesla, "Ash, whatever happens from this moment on, I like to thank you for helping me and helping this island. If you hadn't shown up, I would probably be in the ground by now. I have never let another human being close to me in almost a century, so I'm proud to call you my friend."

"Thanks Tesla." cheered Ash.

"Pika Pika!" Pikachu cheered with the moment.

"Save your enthusiasm guys, I really appreciate it in all but if I win or lose it might still be a bad situation."

Ash's expression dropped, "Why?"

"Pika?" Pikachu wondered.

"I'm old now okay, I'm not as rugged as I used to be. My bones feel fragile, my joints are hurting, my eyesight feels like its failing, and many of my cells aren't doing their job as they used to. Many of the most serious Pokémon battles I've ever face and managed to win, I never come out of it unscathed. Pikachu, you may want to pay close attention so you can get a heads up on what to expect in your golden years."

"Pika." Pikachu nod.

"Ash?"

"Yes Tesla?"

"If you die before Pikachu, make sure he has something to fall back on. The older the bond between you and your Pokémon, the greater the pain it will be when it breaks. I'd experienced it... And looked what I'd become. I got Irvin's will too late, a bad move on my part and a few other factors. But you and your Pikachu have a strong heart, I'm sure his retirement years wouldn't be too bad."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Tesla turned towards the large opening, Ash looked up and saw who he's looking at. A Pokémon trainer, somewhere in his twenties, stood at the other side of the field. He was quite patient, he seemed to be waiting for Tesla."

"It's almost time," said Kissinger, "You sure you're up for this?"

Tesla looked at Kissinger and smiled, "Nope."

Matt let out a laugh for a brief moment, "Just like every Pokémon battle you had over the years, huh?"

"Yes, those are the good old times. I wonder what Irvin would think if he saw how my situation escalated into."

"He'll probably think that's the reason he chose you, you're just loaded with trouble."

"Well, I'm not the one who's losing hair so I'm not _that _much in trouble."

Matt placed his hand on top of his head, his jaw dropped, "Oh, damn you. You tease like Irvin!"

"Yup," said Tesla, "Some things live on, of course. Thanks again for taking care of me when Irvin's busy during the old days, and especially thank you for the massages you used to give me."

"Always a pleasure, friend."

Tesla turned back towards his opponent, "Let's not keep him waiting any further, I have a weird feeling about this."

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	24. Chapter XXIV

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter XXIV_

It felt strange, there was something about the battle that bugged Tesla. Not because it may decide his fate, it was something else. He took up position in the usual spot on all fours, staring into the eyes of the enemy trainer. His opponent had the look of respect, so Tesla showed his respect by standing on his hind legs. Normally a Pokémon with his frame would stand on all fours, but Tesla felt it was improper, even though it felt didn't feel right when in battle. He balled his fist and nodded his head.

Mayor Dixon stood at the side at the middle of the field, he had a microphone clipped to the collar of his business suit. After making sure it was on properly, he began the summary of the Pokémon battle, "This Pokémon Battle will determine if the famous Tesla Westinghouse will either be pardoned, or be taken into custody by authorities. This will be a one on one match, victory will be claimed by the Pokémon left standing."

"What's very unique about this battle is that a Pokémon will be calling the shots and decide what moves he'll make, since this Pokémon is so well-trained he no longer has use for a trainer."

That got the crowd murmuring, then it rang inside Tesla's head, _Of course_, he thought, _So that's why this feels weird, I don't have Irvin telling me what to pull on my opponent_.

He juggled the thought around in his brain for a moment, then remembered that he'd done this before. Numerous occasions actually, against trainers and their Pokémon just outside his home. Maybe what makes it really strange was that this was the same situation, yet it was incorporated into an official Pokémon match. Tesla made it at least 20 years fighting these kinds of matches, the thought made him feel confident enough that he may either win or lose in a blaze of glory.

The opposing trainer pulled out a Poké ball and held it in his hand for a moment, he pressed the white button and enlarged it before tossing it in front of him, "Darmanitan, I choose you!"

A bright white beam came out of the Poké ball and a Darmanitan appeared, "Darmanitan!" he roared with an intimidating pose.

_Eh_, thought Tesla, _Fire-type are okay_.

The Darmanitan rest his knuckles on the ground, ready to pounce on a hair-trigger's notice. Tesla stood his ground, not even flinching when he thought the Darmanitan was taunting him. All around, the voice from the crowd increased in volume. This was about to get interesting.

"Let the Pokémon Battle begin!" the mayor announced.

Tesla let out a smile with his serious look, a look familiar to those who seen him in his Pokémon battles. He held up his hands and gestured the Darmanitan to make the first move, _Bring it on, fireball_.

"Darmanitan," said the trainer, "Use Flame Charge!"

Darmanitan stomped his feet, kicking up a ton of dust and fire into the air before charging across the field. Tesla held his ground as Darmanitan charged at him, everyone looked on at the edge of their pants, wondering what he was trying to pull, _Now, Tesla_.

Tesla jumped forward and his tail turned to steel, Darmanitan wasn't ready when he took the blow to the face. The Iron Tail move shot Darmanitan back, causing him to flop into the middle of the field as fire and dust shoot everywhere. Just as Darmanitan tried to get up, Tesla charged forward on all fours in lightning speed and slammed straight into the fire-type Pokémon's chest. Darmanitan flew backwards and landed back where he started.

"Whoa," cried his trainer, "Darmanitan, are you alright!?"

"Darmanitan." Darmanitan said as he got back onto his feet.

Tesla backed up to his original spot, the Quick Attack gave him a headache but he shook it away. The crowd of humans and Pokémon started cheering a little bit, obviously thrilled but not entirely impressed... Yet.

"Darmanitan," cried the trainer, "Use Flamethrower!"

"Darmanitan!" the Pokémon spat out a column of fire straight at Tesla.

_Time to use some new moves_.

Tesla sucked in air and surrounded himself with a light-blue wall of electricity, the Flamethrower hit him hard but failed to puncture the sparks of his plasma. As Tesla struggled to hold back the flames, he felt his body heat up. He couldn't tell if it was his energy or from the heat of the fire, not that it matters or anything. It took a few seconds for the Flamethrower to die down, when it did the crowd was amazed at what happened next.

The old Pikachu stood up on his hind legs and held out his arms, the light-blue electricity he produced gave off an unusual sound. Instead of the familiar sound that sounded like squashed fruit electric Pokémon produced, Tesla's electricity was more of a loud buzzing sound in a deep tone. He displayed the electricity for a few seconds before raising his arms, all the large sparks shrank into two miniature-sized energy balls with one of each on Tesla's hands. Once fully formed, Tesla swung down with his arms and sank the energy balls into the ground.

A powerful bolt of lightning came out of the ground, just where Darmanitan stood. The blast gave off a loud crack, followed by a powerful high-buzz sound as it propelled the Pokémon up into the air. Darmanitan laid on his face for a brief second before getting back up, Tesla got back up on to his hind legs and punched a fist into the air. Just for the heck of it.

The crowd went ecstatic, they all cheered for a moment for him. Tesla let out a smile and waved at the closest camera, just to taunt the trainer and his Darmanitan, "What was that," the trainer hollered in disbelief, "What did he just pull?"

"It's a move called Grounded," Ash called out, "He invented it himself!"

Tesla nodded at the enemy trainer, _I invented it alright_. He thought.

The trainer became puffing mad and stomped a foot on the ground, "Hit him with Superpower!"

A huge storm of fire kicked up and Darmanitan shot straight at Tesla, even though he came in like a missile Tesla jumped out-of-the-way, but not before getting a face full of fire. He coughed loudly as landed back on the ground, when he opened his eyes the world was just clearing up. Darmanitan landed back at his spot, all pumped up but disappointed that he missed Tesla.

The old Pikachu brushed the soot off his fur, it was relieving when he felt his sweat cool his skin. Once he got all the dust off, Tesla smelled something burning behind him. He looked over his shoulder and saw the tip of his tail had a small flame smoldering on it, Tesla simply pinched it and it was extinguished.

Seeing Tesla was still standing, the trainer growled under his breath, then gave another command, "Flamethrower Darmanitan!"

"Darma!" Darmanitan belched out another column of fire, Tesla inflate his lungs and unleashed a powerful Thunderbolt to intercept it. The sound of his unique lightning signature felt pleasing, its deafening buzz made Tesla feel more powerful than he actually was. No matter, the Thunderbolt failed to deflect most of the Flamethrower and some embers got through, singing Tesla's foot. He didn't feel it until Darmanitan's action ceased, then the smell of burned fur rose up.

_Amazing that I'm not down yet_. He thought as he glanced down at his foot, some fur was burnt away to revealed red skin underneath. Tesla shook off the sting and returned attention back to Darmanitan, ignoring another cheer from the crowd.

"You're okay, Tesla!?" Ash called out from behind.

Tesla stuck his thumb up for a couple of seconds, signaling he's okay, _Normally I do these gestures to Irvin_. He thought.

"Use Tackle!"

Darmanitan did a basic charge at Tesla, after using up most of his energy in defending himself Tesla didn't react in time when Darmanitan gave him a full body slam. Tesla somersaulted backwards and crashed onto the ground, he heard the crowd gasp in response. He simply stood up on all fours and shrugged it off with a grin, even though his joints stabbed pain into his nerves like never before. Darmanitan returned to his spot on the other side of the field and got ready for his next attack.

Tesla gave it a second before taking his turn. He charged straight at Darmanitan for another Quick Attack, it wasn't as fast as the last time, "Intercept it with Fire Punch!" the trainer commanded.

"Darmanitan!"

Darmanitan held up his dominant fist and it burst into flames, then charged straight at Tesla. The old Pikachu aimed straight for Darmanitan's stomach a while trying to move in an unpredictable pattern, but it wasn't enough. His opponent punched Tesla hard in the chest, it felt like getting it by a freight train. Tesla felt something shifted in his chest suddenly when he heard a loud pop, it sounded like the amplified sound of industrial bubble wrap popping. It pierced his ears for a brief second as Darmanitan knocked him back, Tesla slammed on to the ground with his back and did a backwards flip before landing on his rump.

Some people in the crowd panicked as Tesla struggled back onto his feet, when he took a breath he felt something stab him inside. It became difficult to breathe, Tesla struggled to take each breath awhile trying his best not to show it. But he can't help but placing an arm over his chest, some people in the crowd went hysterical as most were silent. Probably wondering if Tesla was going to drop in defeat.

Whatever Darmanitan did, it sure hurt. Tesla had broken bones before, but he never had a broken rib. Now the clock was really ticking, if he's unable to battle...

_Might as well unleash all the energy I can muster_. Tesla thought.

He recalled how Irvin were to take him back home after being severely beaten in a battle. His trainer carried Tesla to the usual bed for him to rest, Irvin was there almost 24/7 as Tesla recovered. Sometimes he fed him peanut butter for comfort, or just to scratch those itchy spots Tesla couldn't quite reach. It was the most loving experience Tesla would ever get out of Irvin, he'll hang tight to these memories in the near future.

"You had enough, Tesla?" the opposing trainer asked.

Tesla balled his fist and got back into his stance. He shook his head no, he isn't quite done yet. The crowd somewhat calmed down enough that someone let out a cheerful whistle, time to show his classic power.

Just like old times, Tesla unleashed a Thunderbolt without warning and struck Darmanitan with it. It wasn't powerful enough to cause severe damage, but it was enough to make sure he wouldn't try a powerful blow on him again. The loud crack still echoed when Tesla stopped the Thunderbolt, Darmanitan wobbled on his feet for a moment before getting back in his battle stance.

_Almost there_. Tesla thought.

"Darmanitan," said the trainer, "Fire Charge!"

_Crap._

Darmanitan stomped his feet and kicked up some fire and dust, if Tesla get's hit by this one he'll be defeated. His old body didn't flinch, but his heart did. Unable to dodge it like last time, it was time for a one-two punch. Tesla got back on all fours, his rib stabbed at his lung as he raised up his tail to form a bright bluish-white energy ball. He then tapped it up in the air and it hovered overhead, just in time for Darmanitan to start charging.

In one final act of desperation, Tesla jumped up in the air and his tail became steel again. He mustered up all his available raw strength and slapped the energy ball at Darmanitan, the adrenaline slowed things down just enough for Tesla to see the fire-type Pokémon's eyes shrink as he took a face full of hot plasma energy. The energy ball created a blast which shot so much fire and earth chunks into the air that the crowds had to rush back, Tesla saw a chunk of debris come right at him. Still in mid-air, Tesla took the full force of the piece of hardened earth and shot backwards. He let out a small scream as he flew backwards, Tesla thought his fate was sealed when he landed on his belly and felt his broken rib puncture his lung.

_Smooth move Tesla_. Tesla thought sarcastically.

The old Pikachu climbed back on to his feet and watched the dust clear, Darmanitan lay on his back with spirals on his eyes. The energy ball made him past out, the fire-type Pokémon was defeated.

Seeing the final result, Mayor Dixon stepped in and held his hand towards Tesla, "Darmanitan is unable to battle, Tesla wins!"

Tesla felt the city of Faraday cheered his name, he let out a smile, a happy one for once. There wasn't any time to cheer, Tesla tasted blood in his mouth. He's still on the clock, there was only enough time to do one thing.

The old Pikachu walked over to Darmanitan and tapped him with his foot, the fire-type Pokémon stirred and looked up at him. Tesla lend him his hand and he grabbed it, the old Pikachu helped up his opponent and the two shook hands, "Thank you for not killing me," said Tesla, "Pika Pika Pikachu, Pika Pika P."

A bit stunned by his choice of words, Tesla can tell Darmanitan was quite welcome. When the two released their shake, Tesla turned around and saw Ash ran up, "You did it," cried Ash, "You won!"

"Pikachu Pikachu Pikachu!" Ash's Pikachu cheered.

"Ash," said Tesla, "I need you to do something for me, it's vital."

Ash picked up Tesla with both hands and held him close, the smile on the human's face dropped, "What's wrong Tesla?"

"Get me to a Pokémon Center," said Tesla, "Quickly, but quietly."

"What-"

Tesla let out a squeal as he grabbed his side, "Don't stall you brat!"

Ash saw how serious his situation was and nodded, he held him to his chest as he ran back towards the group. Were were cheering in pride, but soon stopped when they saw the look his face, "What's wrong?" Matt asked.

"Tesla's injured," said Ash, "We gotta get him to the Pokémon Center, but we can't cause a panic in the process."

"How much time do we got?" Kissinger asked.

Tesla coughed and spewed blood out into the grass, "Short." he croaked.

That was a bad move, Tesla heard someone scream at the top of their lungs. So much for keeping a low profile, "Okay," said Tesla, "Screw the stealth, just get me an ambulance."

Kissinger got on his portable radio and called for an ambulance, almost immediately an ambulance sounded its siren nearby and pulled but near the group. A couple of paramedics got out with a gurney and Ash placed Tesla on it, "What happened?" one of the paramedics asked.

"Darmanitan broke one of my ribs," wheezed Tesla, "When I belly-flopped back there, it punctured my lung."

"Amazing you can still speak," said the other paramedic as they placed an oxygen mask over his face, "Don't worry Tesla, we'll take good care of you."

The paramedics got Tesla into the back of the ambulance and shut the doors behind him, the old Pikachu watched as they shaved off a bit of fur off his wrist before giving him an IV. As the ambulance pulled away, Tesla relaxed his muscles and let his mind go blank.

**. . .**

Ash watch the ambulance drove off with Tesla, he and his Pikachu felt tears in his eyes after it vanished at the intersection. Tesla had just won the Pokémon battle and got his pardon, yet his life still hang on the balance. He quickly remembered the loud pop he heard and saw how Tesla struggled to breathe during the match, Ash wondered how can a small Pokémon like Tesla endure all that.

He felt a hand place itself on his shoulder, Ash turned and saw it was Matt, "He's a strong little guy," he reassured, "He'll pull through."

"I sure hope so." said Ash.

Mayor Dixon and Lieutenant Kelly ran up to the group in a hurry, "What just happened?" Dixon asked.

"Tesla's injured," said Ash, "You saw him try to breathe after he took in that Fire Punch?"

Dixon's face dropped, "The battle should have ended right there, yet Tesla still had fight left in him. He hasn't changed at all!"

"Before the match, what did Tesla told you?"

It took a moment for them to answer, "Tesla told us we have permission to euthanize him on the spot," said Kelly, "If he failed."

Everyone's jaw dropped, "What?"

"He told us to have the SWAT team gun him down," said Dixon, "Right in front of all those people. He said he wished to die with serious drama in a heroic fashion, no one is going to believe it if it really happened."

Ash looked to the side and saw the SWAT team packing up their things in their truck, getting ready to leave. They have the look of relief on their faces, every single one of them, "They don't wanna do it, do they?"

"They don't," said Kelly, "It's a moral question to either kill him there or just arrest him, either way he's still going to meet the same fate."

"What else did he told you?" asked Kissinger.

As the adults chat to each other, Ash tapped Mark on the shoulder and stepped away. Matt followed close behind as the two got in a more private section, "I think my vacation is winding to a close," said Ash, "I'll leave in the next few days, or until Tesla get's out of the hospital."

"I've heard my house has been turned over back to me and my dad," said Mark, "You're free to stay as long as you like."

"Thanks Mark." said Ash.

"Pikachu." thanked Pikachu

"Come on," said Mark, "Let's meet up with some friends and a few reporters, we'll get out our version of what happened before the news crisis really starts."

"You sure that's a good idea?"

"We'll be one of the first few who'll be interviewed, it's best to get this done now or the media will be breathing down are neck."

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	25. Chapter XXV

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter XXV_

When Tesla got to the Faraday City Pokémon Hospital, the paramedics quickly got him out of the ambulance. Some protestors outside the Pokémon Center were prettified when they saw the old Pikachu on the gurney. They didn't impede the paramedics as they took him inside. Doctors quickly got Tesla off the gurney and on a stretcher, one doctor tried to talk to Tesla in an effort to keep him calm. He remained unresponsive, maybe tired from his battle.

He was taken to the X ray room where they scanned his chest, what they found was one of Tesla's lower ribs had punctured his left lung. What was horrifying about it was the rib came close to damaging his heart, had that happened then Tesla would've been in the morgue. Now with a better understanding on what they were dealing with, Tesla was wheeled to the emergency room for surgery. The surgeons washed their hands and suited up, then took a closer look at Tesla's chest X Ray. Their eyes shot wide open when they saw previous Pokémon battle injuries.

Tesla's rib cage showed distress, at least half of his ribs were broken in the past. The right side of his collarbone was so smashed that titanium rods were rooted in place to support it, it baffled the doctors that Tesla was no stranger under the knife. Then again, it was no surprise since Tesla's occupation requires him to get into harm's way. But to see how much injuries he had, it was a wonder that he still moved like the wind.

They also discovered Tesla's osteoarthritis. It was more severe than anyone previous thought, his knees, elbows, and ankles showed heavy damage. Other smaller joints showed signs of deteriorating joints, such as in the hands and feet. This wasn't a surprise, since Tesla had osteoarthritis before Irvin's death. What they found next caught the surgery team by surprise.

Small clumps of tumors were speckled all over Tesla's organs in the abdomen. The biggest tumor was a size of a coin, which was the equivalent to a baseball size for a human. There was no telling how long they had been there, most surround important organs such as the liver, stomach, and intestines. It was a mess beyond imagination.

At around 107 years old, Tesla's health had deteriorated more than he thought. Not only was he breaking down physically, but his cells struggled in vain to function. The doctors had the technology to fix this problem, but first they had to fix the broken rib. After studying the X Ray for 2 minutes, the doctors got down to work.

Tesla was prepped on the table, his goggles were removed as some of his fur was shaved off to make way for surgery. The doctors sedate Tesla with a shot, just to prevent him from waking up during surgery, then they made an incision just under the left portion of Tesla's chest. The hole made by the broken rib was stitched closed, then the rib was stapled back into place. As the doctors clean up the loose blood, several doctors said that they watched Tesla battle in the gyms in Unova decades back. They saw the injuries he taken, they never thought they would ever operate on him at all. It was an experience the doctors would never forget.

Once they stitch the incision closed, the surgeon team cleaned up shop as another team took place. This team took Tesla to another part of the hospital, where they began to treat him for old age. Beforehand they opened up Tesla's profile and found the instructions his trainer had left behind. Since Tesla had cancer, there was not a moment to loose. Two tubes were inserted into Tesla's back, each one pierced the Vena Cava, the largest vein in any animal that snakes up to the lungs and heart to return oxygen depleted blood. Once the tubes were fitted, the machine was turned on and it began extracting Tesla's blood.

It was transferred into a machine where antibodies embedded with iron particles were injected into the mix, these antibodies attached themselves to Tesla's failing and dormant cells. As the blood ran through the system, a powerful electromagnet kicks in. Thanks the the iron particles in the antibodies, they were attracted to the electromagnet and extracted out of the blood, carrying the old cells with them. Now revitalized, the blood was pumped back into Tesla's system where they can now perform their eternal duties with room to grow and replicate.

20 minutes went by and a loud buzz sounded, signaling the process was complete. The machine was turned off and doctors removed the tubes. After closing the holes made by the thick tubes, doctors insert a much thinner tube into a vein in Tesla's arm. Blue liquid was injected into Tesla's system, this blue liquid are nanobots. These tiny artificial bugs are programmed to scan the body for threats and anomalies and destroy them, it took decades to prefect them and now Tesla was getting the final product.

Once they were inside Tesla's system, they got straight down to work. They traveled to his heart where they began to clear the arteries and veins from plague buildup. Tesla had a ton of plague built up around his heart, forming a bit every time he ate. It can take decades to clog an artery, but thanks to Tesla's "exercise program" the walls were kept mostly clear. But only for so long. Doctors watch on a special camera and watched the plague completely dissolve, every bit on the walls were cleared out and more blood was able to pump through again.

With the heart disease cured, the nanobots were carried across the rest of the circulatory system where they found their way through the capillaries of Tesla's internal organs and reach the cancer cells. They went inside each and every cell and scrambled the DNA, then the deformed cell walls were shredded by the nanobots' teeth. The natural immune system took over by sending in macrophages, cells that clean up debris in the system. The macrophages took their time in devouring the destroyed cancer cells, bit by bit.

With their job done, the nanobots flow through other parts of the body to assist Tesla's immune system on its daily business. The irony about the macrophages was that they are often responsible for causing cancer and worsening heart disease, so the nanobots kept a close eye on the macrophages just in case one of them became defective. Impressed by the results, the doctors turned off the monitor and wheeled Tesla to the recovery room.

They placed the old Pikachu on the bed and hooked him up to life support. With Tesla's life saved in both the short and long term, the doctor's called it a day as hospital security moves in. Two guards stood outside his hospital door, armed with only pistols. Due to Tesla's influence, the guards were tasked to make sure that the room doesn't get invaded either by adoring fans or potential enemies. If Tesla was awake, he would surely agree to the protection.

**. . .**

A week passed by, and it was fast. The Tesla Protests mostly died down, the opponents simply gave up and went home as the supporters flocked together to raise money for the old Pikachu. As the authorities regain control over the city, Ash and his Pikachu spent a bit of time exploring the city for what it was. Once or twice a day, he was stopped by a Tesla fan who gave him money. They all said to give it to Tesla, in hopes in paying off the medical bills he had. If they were giving it to Ash, he would've declined the offer. But since they were both helping a friend, that friend will need all the support he can get.

Mark took Ash to the most interesting spots in the city, even taking him to Faraday City Westinghouse Museum. The brush up on Tesla's past was interesting, even getting a look at some of Irvin's possessions. The most priced possession just so happened to be Tesla's Poké ball, displayed neatly on a pedestal surround with thick plexiglass. The Poké ball was yellow and black, looking closely Ash noticed it was a Poké ball designed to capture super heavyweight Pokémon. According to the info at the pedestal's base, the Poké ball was designed to keep Tesla inside since he was a genius at breaking out of enclosures. What made it more interesting was that Irvin never used it and it was kept in his underwear drawer until it was discovered by family members.

The museum even had Tesla's first pair of eye goggles, which was displayed not far away from his Poké ball. The pair of goggles, the same ones Matt had handcrafted, was smashed. The lens were broken and cracked, the leather worn down. Not a surprise since it was at least a century old. According to the info on the pedestal, it was destroyed when Tesla finished his first Pokémon battle. Destroyed by his Quick Attack on an Onix.

Ash went on and saw the Tesla coil that inspired Tesla's name, Irvin's first cybernetic arm, and many photos and videos of Tesla and Irvin in their past time. One of the famous videos was Tesla shooting 30 bottles with a Thompson gun with 30 shots, before unloading the entire clip into a wall to write his name. The way Tesla did it made sure he finished in less than 2 minutes, which awe inspired the viewers.

_He's such a cowboy_. Ash smiled.

By the time Ash and Mark got back to the Kissinger house, Matt was there waiting for them, "You wanna go see Tesla?" he asked.

"He's awake?" Ash asked.

The news that Tesla was alive made the world cheer, pulling them from a state of depression to celebration. No one, not even the mayor, had ever went up to check up on him. Until now.

"No," said Matt, "But still, we should go see him."

"We didn't even know what the doctors did to him," said Mark, "I'm wanting to find out for a week now!"

"Well," said Ash, "Let's go and see him!"

"Pika Pika!" agreed Pikachu.

Ash and Mark climbed into the back of Matt's station wagon as Pikachu and Emolga sat in their laps, Matt started up the engine and they drove straight towards the Pokémon Center. They saw it mostly cleared up now, though there was still a few groups of Tesla fans holding up their signs in support for him. When the group walked into the Faraday City Pokémon Hospital, Nurse Joy was there to greet them, "I was there," she said, "I saw him taken away to the Pokémon Center, I didn't know what to think."

"We're here to see him Nurse Joy," said Ash, "Where is he?"

"Right this way."

Nurse Joy led the group up several floors and down a hallway where they entered one of the rooms. Tesla had his own room, he laid on the hospital bed hooked up to life support. It was a grizzly sight, but he was alive. The group was surprised to find Kissinger sitting on a chair, listening to the beeps and breathing machine of the life support system as he watched Tesla slept, "I'm surprised to see you here." said Matt.

"Hey Dad," said Kissinger, "Hey guys."

"Hey Dad." said Mark.

"Emolga." Emolga said hi.

"So what's been happening Officer Kissinger?" Ash asked.

"I managed to take a few days off from work," he said, "I just been promoted."

"You got promoted?" Mark asked.

"The Chief of Police decided to retire, I'm now getting his job."

"How did you become Chief of Police?" Matt asked.

"Tesla's been a thorn in the side of the FCPD for 20 years, since you guys got him I managed to get 10 million pokédollars dumped into the family bank account."

"The reward money?" Mark asked in surprised.

"Emolga!?" Emolga added.

"Mayor Dixon gave me the reward in the end," said Kissinger, "Now a lot of police officers in the FCPD are being laid off because the budget had been greatly reduced, no need for a large police force now since Tesla's now pardoned."

"Had he woken up?"

"No," said Kissinger, "He hadn't yet, I've been sitting here since this morning and-"

**. . .**

Tesla felt tired, yet he felt good. He moaned as his eyes fluttered open, barely able to make out the figures in the room. He tried to speak, but discovered he can't. Tesla began to struggle a little bit but felt a hand touch his wrist, "He's awake," announced Mark's voice, "Hey Tesla, can you hear me?"

Within seconds, his hearing became clear. But not his vision, Tesla struggled to reach for the tube that was down his throat with his other hand but couldn't lift it, "Someone get a doctor in here!" said Matt.

A moment later, Tesla saw a blurry white figure approach him. The constant beeping over his head ceased and a breathing noise shut off, then the breathing tube was removed. Tesla took a deep breath, almost in panic, "I hate life support." he managed to say.

Matt started laughing, then everyone began laughing. Tesla laid their in utter confusion, trying to make sense of the blurry world, "I can't see," said Tesla, "Where's my goggles?"

He felt his precious goggles been placed around his head, once the lens covered his eyes he saw it was Ash who put them on. The world was so clear that Tesla cross-eyed for a split second, "Oh thank you," said Tesla, "I would've panicked if they were gone."

"What happened to that box of eye goggles you stole from my house several years back?" Mark asked.

"Same place where I kept your Pokémon," said Tesla, "We'll worry about that later."

"How you're feeling Tesla?" asked the doctor.

Tesla didn't noticed him until he spoke, the doctor's hair was white yet it was a familiar face. He knew who he was.

"I feel like someone literally stabbed me in the back and rearranged my insides, everything either hurts or doesn't feel like moving," Tesla then let out a smile, "It's good to see you again Dr. Rosenberg, it's been years."

Dr. Rosenberg chuckled, "Great to see you too Tesla."

"You two know each other?" Mark asked.

"Dr. Rosenberg has been Irvin's personal doctor during the later years of his life," said Matt, "He's also have experience treating Pokémon."

"You wanna go over what we found when we fixed you up?" Dr. Rosenberg asked.

"Sure." Tesla muttered.

Dr. Rosenberg picked up some files and pulled out a couple of black sheets, then placed them on the glowing lightboard. They both revealed two scans of a Pokémon's chest and abdomen each, "This is what we found," he pointed to the chest X Ray, "You've broken this rib here, we managed to fix it as well as your punctured lung. It should be a while before they'll heal completely."

"When was this?"

"About a week ago."

That didn't faze Tesla, "I missed a week?"

"You were out cold," said Kissinger, "I come in to see you once a day, hoping that you would wake up."

"Thankfully I didn't." Tesla chuckled.

"But we found something else," continued Dr. Rosenberg, "Not the previous injuries you had, and the osteoarthritis of course."

The doctor pointed to the other X Ray, "We discovered you had cancer."

The room went silent for a moment, "Cancer?" Ash asked in shock.

"It had progressed a lot," said Dr. Rosenberg, "But it didn't spread beyond the abdominal cavity."

"I'm not surprised," said Tesla, "I knew I was a goner anyway."

"Well, we managed to cure it. We've injected nanobots into your bloodstream and it destroyed the cancer cells, right now they're patrolling your system in search for any problems to treat."

Ash breathed a sigh of relief, "That's relieving."

"We also extracted all of your failed cells out of your system," said Dr. Rosenberg, "Making you biologically young again, like Ash's Pikachu here."

"Pikachu." Pikachu had to add.

"You cured my cancer _and _old age?" Tesla asked.

"Yes we did." said Dr. Rosenberg.

Tesla was surprised he didn't feel thrilled or anything, he thought for a moment why until he remembered how he was made. The experience he had when he was young, it damaged him beyond repair. The thought reminded him of something, "Did you fix everything?"

"Yeah," said Dr. Rosenberg, "We got everything, we didn't miss anything at all."

"However," Tesla placed a finger on his temple, "The brain can live for so long that it will eventually degrade, sooner or later my mind will deteriorate to a point where I just lose all my memories. And even if you fix that, all the memory storage in my brain will max out. That can be a very bad situation in my case. But hey, let's be fair. I have a few hundred years before I can worry about that stuff, you did all you can for now. So when I'm ready to check out of the hospital."

"It's gonna be a while," said Dr. Rosenberg, "Probably another few days."

"So what are you going to do when you get out of the hospital Tesla?" Ash asked.

"Leave this island for good," said Tesla, "I'll probably travel around the world, see what there's to see, and do what can be done, until someone or something comes along and snuffs my life out. That's the plan at the moment."

"I do know of one of Irvin's relatives living somewhere in Unova," said Matt, "He's a professor in researching Pokémon, he well associated with Irvin and he lives near a few groups of Pikachus?"

"Pikachus in Unova?" Tesla asked

"Not ordinary Pikachus, they could be directly descended from you."

Tesla thought about that for a moment, "Well, since the family from the life stolen from me is long gone, I might investigate Irvin's relative. Where does he live?"

"Somewhere in a town that bare the family name."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Ash's Pikachu jumped off his shoulder and landed on the bed, he crawled up to Tesla and stood on his hind legs, "Hey Pikachu," said Tesla, "Come closer?"

"Pika?" Pikachu asked as he stepped within arms reach.

Tesla placed his hands on Pikachu's cheeks, they lit up in a bright white bright flash and buzzed for a few seconds. When Tesla let's go, Pikachu stumbled backwards and placed a hand on his head, "Pikachu." he said, stunned by what just happened.

The old Pikachu felt his energy returned in one go, the world just seemed better now, "Oh that feels _much _better!" he exclaimed.

"What did you just do?" Ash asked as he picked up Pikachu.

"I took a little bit of Pikachu's electricity," said Tesla, "Kind of a special ability of mind. Your Pikachu will be fine, but he may have some weird dreams tonight."

Pikachu shook the dizziness out of his head, then blinked a couple of times, "Pika." he said in a daze.

"That should reduce the recovery time," added Tesla, "Now I'm in the mood for some peanut butter, do you guys have any?"

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	26. Chapter XXVI

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter XXVI_

For the next 11 days, Ash and Pikachu visited Tesla at the hospital. Most of the time Tesla was sleeping, but that didn't really matter. Nurse Joy told him that Tesla was the most unusual Pokémon she ever met. When provided Pokémon food, he flatly rejected it. He insisted on some fruits and a bit of meat, saying that he needed the protein. Even though he speaks human language, he still rarely spoke to anyone. Not even Dr. Rosenberg. He never watched the TV, but only read some books and newspapers. This kind of behavior, yet complex and unusual for Pokémon, was not a surprise, since Tesla was an intellectual.

Nurse Joy went on and said that on some days he's grumpy, and other days he let's out a smile but says nothing. She asked him one occasion why he doesn't talk, "Old habits" was all he said. The other doctors and nurses often tease him, like when Nurse Joy helped him go to the bathroom they sneak over to his bed and removed the small peanut butter jars Ash brings him from underneath the pillow or bed. When he comes back, he quickly discovered right away they were missing. They were hoping in getting him to talk, maybe even rage, but they only managed to get him to groan. His eyes said it all though, which was good enough.

Around one morning, Mark managed to get the call that Tesla was going to be checked out of the hospital, and was asked if he can pick him up. He agreed, so he and Ash hopped into the old pickup truck and drove to the hospital and walked over to Tesla's room, they saw the old Pikachu sitting on his bed waiting for them. A few layers of gauze was wrapped around Tesla to cover the surgical stitches around, some fur on his hands and chest were shaved off to make way for the surgery. The old Pikachu didn't seemed to notice, "About time." Tesla said with a smile.

"You're excited?" Ash asked.

"Pika Pika?" added Pikachu.

"Not really, but I'm eager to get out of here."

"I hope you do okay Tesla." said Nurse Joy.

"I will if a thousand people _doesn't _say that statement. By the way, how much does the medical bills cost?"

"The money Irvin left you for the procedures covered most of it, and fellow fans managed to cover the rest. They're so generous that they'll continue to donate money to you for the next few years."

"Ahh, a good pension is what I need."

"You're ready to go?" Mark asked.

"I'm pretty much ready, just please don't announce it on the way out."

Ash reached out to pick up Tesla, but he hesitated a bit, "I don't bite Ash," said Tesla, "But I do shock, I don't think rubber gloves will help you as much as they did for your Pikachu."

Ash forgotten that Tesla knew a lot about him, holding that thought he picked up Tesla off the bed and carried him in his arms, "There we go, that's the spirit. Please hold on tight, I do not wish to fall."

"I won't drop you." said Ash.

He increased his grip around Tesla and followed Mark out of the hospital, they slipped out a side entrance just to avoid the major crowds. With the coast clear, the group got into Mark's pick up truck and they drove back to the house. Ash looked out the window and saw the city was calm again. No more large crowds, no more protests. Everyone went back to their daily tasks and things went back to normal, as if it never happened. The large medical tents were still around though, but they're clearing up as they send treated Pokémon home.

"When are you going to leave Faraday Island, Ash?" Tesla asked.

"Soon," said Ash, "Really soon."

"Okay, this is what I wanna do. I want to come with you, I stirred up enough trouble on this island already. Even though it's my long time home, it harbors a lot of memories from the Westinghouse days. I wanna move on, and I need your help with that Ash."

"Sure, I'll take you with me."

"Pikachu!" said Pikachu.

"Thanks," said Tesla, "But there's a few things we need to be clear on, either when I travel with you or brush by on occasion."

"What would that be, Tesla?"

"I wanna be treated as a _person_ and not just a Pokémon, I've reached a mental level where I can speak my mind with other human beings. Second, I'm not your Pokémon and your not my trainer. I will not fight your battles in either skirmish or major ones, that's a life dead and buried. Third, by the time we get to wherever you're going, we depart. But I'll stay close behind and be somewhere, since I owe you one."

"Can you teach my Pikachu some of your moves?" Ash asked.

"Pika?" Pikachu asked.

"Sure, I'll might teach your Pikachu some moves of mine. Though the energy demand might drain your Pikachu's strength, it took a lot of energy to shock you through the ground since the earth likes to resist."

"My Pikachu's strong, he defeated a Raichu and some legendary Pokémon."

"Had he ever defeated an opponent in one blow?"

"A few times."

"Pikachu." Pikachu bragged.

Tesla chuckled, "I've defeated a few dozen legendary Pokémon during my time, and even knock Raichus out cold. You know how?"

"What?"

"My electric attacks have more amperage to them, what's very interesting is that electric attacks from an electric-type Pokémon may be as powerful as 100,000 Volts yet have little to no Amps. My electric attacks have amperage to them, you can tell by the nature of my electricity. It only takes either 200 or 300 milli amps to kill a human being, a regular or even a legendary electric-type Pokémon can only unleash 50 milliamps. I, if I choose to, can unleash 500 milli amps at around 1 _million _Volts. Enough to obliterate most matter, its quite powerful."

"Like the tree you destroyed."

"You're still scared of that?"

"No."

"It usually takes a considerable amount of effort for an electric-type Pokémon to control the amount of electricity they put out, and I mean a _lot _of effort. There's always a delay if a Thunderbolt is unleashed for example. I managed to master my own powers that I can unleash a Thunderbolt effortlessly, absolutely no warning. Irvin didn't taught me that, I taught myself."

Ash remembered how Tesla unleashed his electric attacks in a split second, he didn't even move at times when unleashing them. Tesla's strength was enormous, Ash wondered if he can get Pikachu in a similar level as Tesla.

"Just thinking back over the years," continued Tesla, "I'd become so strong that it wasn't about battling anymore. I've learned some things that a Pokémon should never learn, since it scars them for life?"

"Learn what?"

Tesla looked up at Ash, "That you can kill another living being."

That sent a shiver up Ash's spine.

"Not surprised there," muttered Mark, "When's the first time you ever killed someone?"

"Me and Irvin were being chased by some guy 60 years ago," said Tesla, "It got to a point where the guy cornered us to some sort of basin at a mountain range, me and Irvin had no idea what the guy wanted but I can tell you that I saw evil in his eyes. Just as he was going to shoot us with his gun, I unleashed a powerful Thunderbolt my body can ever produce. The attack caused the guy to explode in a brilliant shower of gore confetti."

"Pika." muttered Pikachu, sounding a bit scared.

"As I stared at the puddle of fried red and brown globs that was once a man, I felt no emotion. No empathy, no sympathy, no remorse. Just nothing, but satisfaction. Believe me, I have no regrets. Irvin wasn't surprised at my power, since he sampled it himself. He gave me a big hug and praised me for my strength, I'm surprised Irvin didn't have any nightmares or anything.

"I occasionally think back to that day and questioned my own aura. I saved lives, yet I ended others. Their alignment to either good or evil didn't matter, what matters is that they're simply people or Pokémon. The best answer I managed to come up with was that my aura sits in the middle, I'm neither good nor evil, but both.

"It made sense, since I at times look on and see someone either in trouble or in need of help. I just walked away, I had no urge to help or to make the situation worse. As I struggle to make sense of my morality, I lost it when Westinghouse died and I was drove into this mess. I can't believe I'm a 107 years old and I lost all sense on what's right and wrong, because I've seen so many cultures that just deteriorated my common sense. Not a good situation to be in.

Ash placed a hand on Tesla's head, "Maybe I can help you find that again."

"That takes time Ash," said Tesla, "It'll start once I get off this island. Oh, since you have your hand there, can you scratch that area."

Ash agreed and started scratching the back of Tesla's head, he closed his eyes and shown a smile as Ash scratched around the back of his neck with his fingernails, "That's good," said Tesla, "Oh yeah, yeah, that's the spot. Ooh, yes."

Tesla laid down on his belly as Ash scratched the top portion of the old Pikachu's back, "That's the spot," said Tesla, "That's the spot! You do it better than my foot, way better!"

"Pikachu." Pikachu sounded irritated.

"Your Pikachu sounds like he's getting jealous, Ash." said Mark.

"Emolga." Emolga added.

"Trust me," said Tesla, "The older you get, the better it feels."

That made Pikachu raised an eyebrow, Ash tried his best not to laugh but wound up letting out a chuckle, "Had it been a while?" Ash asked.

"A _long _while." the old Pikachu answered.

Mark pulled up on the driveway of his house and into the garage, he then killed the engine and the group heads inside the living room. Pikachu jumped off Ash's shoulder as he sat Tesla on the couch, Emolga also climbed on the couch and sat next to him, "Now what do we do?" Mark asked.

"Nothing," said Tesla as he grabbed the remote, "We do nothing at all."

Tesla turned on the TV and kicked back to relax, "I see you watch the news like your Grandpa," he said, "What a family tradition."

Without warning, one of Ash's Poké balls burst open and Oshawott materialized on the couch. Before Ash could react, he was stopped when he saw Oshawott approaching Emolga, "Oshawott." he said softly, with hearts in his eyes.

_Oh not again! _Ash thought.

Emolga watched in curiosity as Oshawott did a little dance, which was quite good. Ash noticed that Emolga was taking interest, which was unusual since all the Pokémon Oshawott fell in love with backs away with an uneasy smirk, "Oh this might be interesting." said Mark.

"Oshawott!" Oshawott finished with a tune, holding an arm up in the air for a pose.

Emolga sat there for a moment and nodded, obviously impressed, "Emolga." she said.

"Oshawott?" Oshawott asked.

She got up on to her feet, grabbed Oshawott around the waist, and gave him a big kiss a while holding him in a romantic manner. The kissed lasted for a few seconds before Emolga let's go, dropping Oshawott on the couch, "Oshawott." he smiled, satisfied that his "love" was returned.

"Emolga." Emolga laughed as she sat back down.

"Looks like Emolga's figuring out the girl role quite well," laughed Tesla, "Maybe she'll date someone soon."

Emolga shook her head, "Emolga."

"Okay then. But if you're in need of company," Tesla pointed to Oshawott, "You know where to get it."

Ash pulled out Oshawott's Poké ball and recalled his Pokémon, he then sat on the couch and tried to relax. Suddenly something crossed his mind, "Are we forgetting something?"

"You know what," said Mark, "I think we did, I'm going out to fetch a few things I'll be right back."

"Emolga!" Emolga cried.

"I'll be back Emolga," said Mark, "Ash, please make sure she doesn't leave this house. Every time I leave with her here, she follows me and she's _very _good in tracking me down."

"I'll keep an eye on her for you." said Ash.

"Thanks, I'll be back in a few hours."

When Mark left, Ash propped his feet on the table as Pikachu crawled on his lap, staring at the TV screen before him.

**. . .**

Within minutes, Ash and Pikachu fell asleep on the couch. Once he was sure they were sleeping, Tesla got up and raid the kitchen pantry. He came back to the living room with a jar of peanut butter and a spoon, Tesla sat back on the couch and begin flipping through several channels. He found nothing interesting on at the moment.

He looked at Emolga and saw she was halfway between awake and sleep, her eyes were struggling to keep open as she tried to focus watching TV. Tesla tapped her on the shoulder, getting her attention, "Look."

Tesla pointed towards Ash, Emolga saw he was sleeping on the couch sitting up. His head was cocked back and rest on the couch, with his mouth slightly open. Pikachu was also out cold, cuddled right on Ash's lap snoring slightly, "Well this is getting boring," whispered Tesla, "Watch this, you might learn something."

"Emolga." Emolga whispered as she nod her head.

Tesla crawled over to Ash and picked up Pikachu with all of his strength, Emolga snickered as Tesla brought Pikachu up on top of the couch and rest him straight on Ash's forehead. He positioned Pikachu so that his groin was resting on Ash's nose, once he made sure he wouldn't fall off Tesla crawled back to his spot and sat down like nothing even happened, "I hope this form of tea bagging catches on." Tesla seriously said.

"Emolga Emo Emo Emolga." Emolga snickered, saying that was the most funniest prank she had seen yet.

"Yeah," Tesla bragged, "I'm a pro at this stuff, I may be a century old Pikachu from another time but I'm an expert on messing with people's minds. I'm still a Pokémon."

Emolga wrapped an arm around Tesla's shoulders, "Emolga."

"Don't you get cute on me," said Tesla, "Remember, I'm old enough to be your great-great grandfather. So don't you think about doing any funny business with me."

"Emolga." Emolga pouted, saying she just wants some fun. She was obviously not picky about who to date, maybe she doesn't even know what the concept was yet.

"You'll get your fun, you can be sure of that."

**. . .**

When Cabot returned home, he saw a few numbers on the answering machine. He pressed the play button and sat back, "Hey Cab," said his boss, "I saw everything on what happened on the news, and your performance. You did good kid, call back as soon as you get this message."

Cabot grabbed the phone and dialed his boss' number, "Hello?"

"Hey Jared, it's Cabot."

"The last trainer who ever go up against Tesla Westinghouse," Jared stated, "Or at least officially."

"You wanted me to call, what is it?"

"You've been promoted, you're getting a higher pay and some new responsibilities. People are coming here by the storm, wanting to battle you."

Cabot chuckled, "I need to get some new Pokémon before I battle anyone first."

"I'll get you some," said Jared, "Fresh from the egg maybe, that way you can add in your own expertise to these Pokémon."

"Thanks Jared, I owe you one."

"Come by tomorrow morning, we have so much to discuss."

"Bye, Jared."

"Bye."

Cabot hanged up the phone and thought for a second, "Well I'll be damned."

He had achieved some fame for the time being, now he had to hold onto that fame as long as possible. Cabot thought about all the people he would speak with, all the autographs he would have to sign. His parents might be somewhat disappointed or somewhat proud as best, he had yet to hear from them. To the looks of things, he might turn this into a win yet.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	27. Chapter XXVII

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter XXVII_

It should had taken Mark just a couple hours, but instead it taken the rest of the day. The old pickup truck had decided on the worst possible occasion to finally throw in the towel, and died just when Mark got to Tesla's safehouse. Still swearing under his breath, Mark ran to the safehouse and crawled through the small hole. Since Tesla's now pardoned, he wouldn't be needing the safehouse anymore. So Mark stripped the safehouse from anything useful, such as the HDTV, the radio, the portable generator, the car batteries, etc.

Everything that can be used for some purpose or another was stashed in the back of the truck, then strapped down with bungee cords. The small TV, radio, and Tesla's box of eye goggles were placed on the front seat, Mark positioned the TV in such a way so he could "buckle it in" with the seatbelt, the radio sat on the floor as the box was placed right on the TV.

Now came the hard part, since the car was dead, Mark turned on the emergency lights and set the pickup truck to neutral. He got out and walked to the back of his truck and started pushing. Mark used every muscle he got in pushing the truck back towards home, since it wasn't that far. Things went smoothly at first, until the front wheels decided to turn on their own. Mark felt the car veer off to the right and tried to stop it, but it was too late. The car rolled down a hill towards the nearby neighborhood, when it made contact with asphalt the wheels squealed before the truck slammed hard against the curb. The pickup truck stopped with sudden force, Mark almost swore he would had caused damage there.

He jogged over to his truck and examined it for damage. Everything seemed alright, the bungee cords held their ground and the TV was okay, but the right front tire was busted beyond repair. It had completely sheered off with the rim bent. Mark swore again, this time at the top of his lungs. This car had served him for a long time, and he had no problems with it at all. Why did it had to quit now?

When Mark was finished announcing his anger to the entire neighborhood, he sat on the curb to collect his thoughts. He quickly thought of an idea and fished out his cell phone. He dialed in Henry's cell phone number and waited for it to ring, "Henry here." his old friend spoke.

"Henry," said Mark, "This is Mark, my car broke down and I need some help pushing it."

"How?" Henry asked.

"Bring your car over and push mine, simple as that."

"Sure, what street are you on?"

Mark told Henry the street name, "Okay," his friend said, "I'll be right over, sit tight Mark."

Mark sat on the curb for at least 20 minutes before Henry showed up in his burgundy color sedan, he rolled down the window as Mark approached. He saw Raichu in the passenger seat, happy to see him, "Okay," Mark told Henry, "Just give my car a gentle push from the rear and I'll steer it home, it shouldn't be that hard."

"Got it, man." said Henry.

Mark ran back to his car and got in the front seat, he watched in the rear-view mirror as Henry turned on his emergency blinkers and started a gentle approach, Mark straightened the front wheels just in time as Henry's car made contact with his, then the old pickup truck started lumbering forward. Going at least 10 miles per hour, Mark sat patiently and steered the car towards home. It wasn't hard making the sharp turns through the streets, thankfully there weren't any traffic to deal with. Though there were a few pedestrians around, none took notice of him. Car breakdowns were surprisingly common in Faraday City, and the methods on moving them were strangely more common as well. Mark wasn't expecting anymore problems, he thought the situation was crusted and couldn't get any worse. He was wrong.

Just when he was halfway there, Mark heard the familiar sound of a squad car's siren followed by some flashing lights. Thinking that Henry stopped already, Mark slammed on the breaks. But Henry was still moving, and crunched the back on Mark's bumper. The cop took his sweet time approaching, glancing at the back of the truck and the crunched bumper as he made his way to Mark's driver side window. Mark rolled it all the way down and got a good look at the cop's face, he recognized him as one of his Dad's friends.

"Mark," the cop asked, "Is that you?"

"You caught me at a bad time," said Mark, "At the worst possible moment."

Henry threw his car into reverse and began to back up, Mark squeezed his eyes when he heard his bumper being ripped off the back of his truck, then clanged onto the asphalt sounding like falling copper pipes, "Sorry!" Henry boldly apologizes.

_We're such idiots_. Mark thought.

"I can see that," said the cop, his expression unchanged, "What do you have back there... And up in that front seat?"

"Stuff from an old friend of the family," said Mark truthfully, "I'm picking them up for him." He lied at the last part.

The cop went silent for a moment, "Need a tow truck?"

"Yeah." Mark quickly replied.

The police officer radioed in a tow truck and one came within minutes, Mark got out of the car and watched as the tow truck pulled up in front of Mark's pickup and backed in. A guy came out of the passenger side of the tow truck and connected a chain to the bottom of the pickup truck, then started to retract it. Slowly the pickup truck was pulled up on top of the tow truck's ramp, the process took several minutes to complete. Mark glanced at Henry and saw the sedan's bumper was crushed, and the pickup truck's back bumper lying before it.

"Looks so rusted," said the cop, "How often do you drive this thing?"

"A lot," said Mark, "It has at least 386,000 kilometers on it."

"First car?"

"Yup."

"Maybe your Dad will buy you a new car, something better with less kilometers on it."

"I highly doubt it, maybe I can get a squad car. More realistically, a retired one."

The cop laughed, "You're better off getting a new car, freshly made from the factory."

"One that specifically hauls ass."

Just when the tow truck managed to get Mark's pickup on board, he jumped back when the tow truck's engine exploded, launching the hood up about 5 meters into the air. By the time it came down, the driver quickly scrambled out of the cab as the engine engulfs in flames, "Oh come on!" the police officer cried, he called for a fire truck before getting his fire extinguisher. Mark just so happen to have a fire extinguisher in his back seat, he grabbed it and participated in controlling the fire.

Within half a minute, a firetruck came in. Firefighters got out the hose, hooked it up to the nearby fire hydrant, and Mark and the cop stepped aside before the firefighters blasted the fire with a huge amount of water. Mark watched as a few small water-type Pokémon wearing firefighter helmets sat on the roof of the firetruck, looking on as the firefighters do their work for them. When the fire was put out, another tow truck was called in and it soon arrived minutes later.

This tow truck was much more smaller, but appeared more solidly built. It pulled up in front of the disabled tow truck and connected a chain to the bottom of the bumper, "So let me get this straight," said Mark, "That tow truck is towing that tow truck which is towing my pickup truck, correct?"

"Yup." said his Dad's friend.

"Isn't that dangerous."

"We never had an accident doing these kinds of tows."

"I'll take your word for it."

When the tow truck pulled the disabled tow truck and Mark's pickup away, another tow truck came in and picked up Henry's, "Great," said Henry as he got out of his car, "There goes my allowance for a month."

"Raichu." added Raichu in the same tone as his trainer.

"Here," said the police officer, "Let me give you a ride to the car pound so we can get the things out of your car."

"Thanks."

That took hours it turns out, because a lot of paper work had to be filled out. It didn't went by smoothly as Mark thought, even when he discovered his insurance isn't going to cover the damage to his old car. It's practically no longer usable. Hours went by, and soon Kissinger came along and saw the damage for himself. Mark sat in the lobby of the car pound office and watched his dad chat with his friend through a window, after a few minutes of conversation Kissinger came inside and met up with Mark, "Some day, isn't it?"

"Yup." said Mark.

"Let's get those things you were carrying and stash them inside my squad car, we'll take them home that way."

It didn't take too long for Mark and his dad to get everything in the back and trunk of the squad car, it was a difficult getting everything settled in but it got in place. By the time they were done, Henry got out of the office and met with the group, "I'll catch you later Mark," said Henry, "My mom's not going to be happy if I don't make it back home."

"Sorry about your car, Henry." said Mark.

"Nah, it's alright. The car seen better days, I'm better off taking the bus."

"Uh, sure. See yeah."

"Raichu." Raichu waved goodbye.

As Henry and Raichu left, Mark got into the passenger's seat of his dad's squad car as he got behind the wheel, "I heard Tesla checked out of the hospital this morning." said Kissinger.

"He's at home," said Mark, "Probably watching TV or eating all of our peanut butter. He's said he's going to leave when Ash heads back to Unova."

"Things will be different without him around, how are his wounds?"

"They seemed to be healing well, since the doctors placed fresh bandages on them in all."

"Good to hear."

By the time the Kissingers got back to the house, the sun was just setting. Mark couldn't believe all the time he wasted, he wondered how Emolga was holding up inside. When Kissinger parked the car, he and Mark got out and began unloading the car. Mark muscled the portable generator into the garage, along with the car batteries. Then helped Kissinger getting the rest of the stuff inside the garage, just over the space where the car used to be. When they're finally done, Mark and his dad hugged, "I'll be back home in an hour," said Kissinger, "Some things I need to take care of at the station."

"See you later dad." said Mark.

When Kissinger drove off, Mark closed the garage door and walked over to his front door. He fumbled around for his keys and unlocked the front door, when he walked inside something grabbed his attention, "What the..." Mark muttered when he saw Pikachu was laying on top of Ash's face.

He turned on the ceiling lights and Ash stirred, "What's on my-" Ash didn't finished when he saw who it was, "Oh, Pikachu!"

Ash picked up Pikachu and held him in the air, "Pika P?" Pikachu muttered.

"Why!?" Ash asked in disbelief.

"Pikachu?" Pikachu asked, clearly he had no clue what he was talking about.

Mark couldn't help but laughed, "That's an unusual way to sleep."

"Ugh," Ash sat Pikachu down and rubbed his eyes for a moment, then returned his attention back to Mark, "You got what you were looking for?"

"Yeah," said Mark, "Except my car broke down, long story there. Anyway, how was Emolga?"

"Oh she's-"

Ash stopped when he saw her, Tesla slept on the couch with his arms wrapped around Emolga. The two were sleeping peacefully on the couch, no telling how long. Mark chuckled and plucked Emolga from Tesla's grip, "It's night now Ash," he said, "You should take Tesla to bed with you."

"Okay," said Ash, then he turned to Pikachu, "You want Tesla to sleep with us for tonight?"

Pikachu hesitated for a moment, trying to figure out an answer. After about a minute, Pikachu nodded his head, "Pikachu."

"Well," said Mark, "Goodnight Ash, I'll see you in the morning."

"Night, Mark." said Ash.

Mark heads into his room and dumped Emolga on the bed, causing her to stir. He shuts the door and locked it before stripping off his pants. He hopped into bed and pulled the covers over him. Emolga crawled underneath the comforter and snuggled up to his side, "Emolga." she said softly.

"I missed you so much," Mark said softly into her ear, then kissed her on the forehead, "The bed feels cold without you."

Getting Emolga back was the best thing that happened to Mark, so far. Tesla didn't intend harm, since he was part of the family. Mark didn't understand what code of conduct Tesla and his generation runs off of, but he have all the time in the world to figure it out. First he didn't believe Tesla was still alive, then Ash came along, and then Tesla came out of hiding. With a few simple decisions, along with a few other factors falling into place at the right time, Tesla had got his pardon and reassured himself into the imagination of the masses. Tesla didn't want to, he didn't even _try _to. But it happened, all because Tesla's ties to Irvin, his special moves, his accomplishments, and his resistances against the law.

Amazing how it all worked out in the end.

**. . .**

Ash waited for Mark's door to close before acting. He shuts off all the lights and TV, then carefully picked up Tesla, trying his best not to wake him. Pikachu followed behind as Ash carried Tesla upstairs and into the guest room, once there he sat him in the bed and put the blanket over him. Feeling the softness of the bed, the old Pikachu's nose and ears twitched, "Can it be," he muttered under his breath, "An actual bed?"

Tesla placed his nose on the bed and sniffed it as he kept his eyes close, "It is, and it's so soft. Reminds me of being hugged by my mother."

"Hospital beds too hard for you?" Ash asked.

"Way too hard," said Tesla, "Not to mention I can't bend on them, just being on a flat soft surface really helps a lot. Besides, I miss sleeping on beds."

Ash stripped down to his underwear and climbed into bed, "What's it like out there at night?" Ash asked.

"Inhospitable to Pikachu life," said Tesla, "No natural fruit that I can eat grows on this island, I'm forced to scavenge out of the trash cans. On some days, I may eat something bad and get a really bad tummy ache. That's what I get for eating garbage. I have a poor shelter, it's more like sleeping on a pile of parasite-infested leaves. The temperature can drop to 10 degrees centigrade, combine that with an occasional stomach ache and my life is really, really, uncomfortable."

"Yet you pull through."

"I did indeed, I was so miserable I just felt like crying. I promised myself this would end soon, sure enough it ended."

"On the way over here, you said about your electricity being very powerful."

"Correct."

"How often do you discharge the built up energy, and how much can you store?"

"Surprisingly I don't have to discharge as often, but storing the energy. Heh, I'll tell you about storing. These red cheeks were abused _a lot_. Every time I get a case of overcharge, my whole body shoots sparks everywhere. The world soon becomes really fast and I can feel myself heat up. Imagine getting a fever with an adrenaline rush, just without the headache and fatigue. Every time I get the condition, any electric attack I unleash packs a punch into anything. One time, I melted a section of street with a Thunderbolt. When was that, 35 years ago? Not to far from here actually, I swung by a couple of weeks ago and saw that the mark I made was still there. I wonder why."

"You don't feel sick or anything?"

"Honestly Ash, my cases of overcharge lands me with a severe fever. Back in the Pre-Westinghouse days, I had a cousin who had a severe case of overcharge, now he rest in pieces. So yes, I do feel sick, but in a different way than most Pikachus. Normally they'll use their tails to ground the electricity in this situation, I just use my feet. A more passive way to burn up the electricity is to hold a simple lightbulb in such a way that it glows, cool party trick if you ask me."

"Wait a second, what happened to your cousin?"

"He got overcharge, which resulted in him resting in _pieces_. That's a more _kinder _way of describing how he passed on."

_Whoops, sensitive subject_. Ash thought before saying, "I'm sorry I asked I-"

"It was never a sensitive issue, it's common in Pikachu society. You know, I missed hanging out with varmints. My family always caused mayhem in the towns. Tearing up the electrical wires, chewing telephone lines, eating more food than our stomachs can contain, those days I missed. In the wild, Pikachus are pests who have nothing better to do than to ruin somebody's day. Thanks to you Ash, I may be able to get those childhood remnants back."

Ash raised an eyebrow, "Why do you think it's fun?"

"Pika Pika?" Pikachu asked.

Tesla rested his head on the pillow and fold his arms back to support his neck, "We have this simple concept," he said, "We're free and we can do whatever we want. No care in the world, no rules, nothing like that. We were living life to its fullest. I'm too old for such a lifestyle, since I know better now. I've seen many Pichus and Pikachus get into bad situations, especially when a double-barreled shotgun is involved. At the time, I thought it was fun to have such a thrill since none of my family members got shot. Irvin chanced that perspective by teaching me what guns really were, and that's a whole different story."

Ash watched as Tesla let out a yawn and pulled the blanket up to his chin, "I'm so strong that I have to sleep more to compensate, I sleep 10 hours at a time on some days. Just ridiculous, even after I'm cured of old age and cancer I still feel tired. Well, goodnight Ash, might as well give you a break from my yapper now."

"Goodnight."

Pikachu crawled up to Ash as he laid down, his trainer wrapped an arm around him and pulled the blanket up to their necks. They fell asleep 20 minutes later.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	28. Chapter XXVIII

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Chapter XXVIII_

Food is the natural thing all Pokémon crave. It sits at the top of the list of all natural cravings. Not only they must have it, but also how they obtain it. Eating is one thing, enjoying them is another. The humans manufacture simple food pellets designed for a Pokémon's type and species, which helps give them energy and boost their performance in battle. Tesla had been introduced to Pokémon food right after he and his family slipped into human captivity. Not only he didn't like it, he was revolted at the sight and smell of it. Being a stubborn Pokémon at that time, the Pikachu refused to eat Pokémon food no matter how much he was persuaded to do so.

Tesla remembered those days well, so well that he still dreamed of them. After being forcefully removed from the family he loved and cherished, Tesla shifted to many Pokémon labs around Kanto, reason being was that those Pokémon labs don't want to deal with him. He lost count on the many new and experienced trainers he warned to back off or get shocked. Had he harmed any of them, that would sign his...

_No_, Tesla thought in his sleep, _Don't think of it_.

At the last Pokémon lab before being shipped to Faraday Island, Tesla refused to eat. The way the pellets taste and feels in his mouth felt so unnatural that he simply had enough. There was no way to explain this to the humans at the time, nor did he cared. The story version Tesla told Ash had the truth bent, instead of not eating for days it was actually weeks.

The humans couldn't get him to eat, nor did they changed the food. They all stood there and wondered why he wouldn't eat. Since they don't know his history because of faulty record keeping, they were all at a lost. The professor tried talking to Tesla in a sweet voice in an effort to get him to eat, even ate it themselves, but he simply turned away with a grumpy face. The professor had cases of Pokémon not eating before, normally the Pokémon would give in to hunger and finally eat or they're well persuaded to it. But for Tesla, it was simply by choice. The professor didn't know that, only thinking of theories that were similar to Tesla loosing something he loved.

Even though he refused to eat and to let other potential trainers even touch him, he did let the professor and the other humans help discharge his electricity. Since Tesla wasn't eating, he had decreased energy. So there was less and less electricity to discharge every time the moment comes around. On the third week of not eating, the professor took the Pikachu to the Pokémon Center. The nurse there saw how weak Tesla was, and offered him an apple.

Pickachus can never resist apples, sometimes even craving them. Tesla had eaten apples in the wild. He knew where the apples came from, since he pluck them straight off the trees himself. But this apple, there was something wrong with it. It was red, and quite shiny. That was it, there was nothing_ wrong_ with it. Tesla is used to eating natural apples, apples that had brown scabs and come in many colors. They always tasted great, but this apple... Was it even an apple to begin with?

Unsure about the apple, Tesla took a bite to try it. The apple tasted flat and the pulp felt all wrong, just what he expected. It had no love, no flavor. It wasn't even fresh, it just _looked _like it. A case of a bad apple disguised as a good one. Tesla had made his verdict, he chucked aside the apple and refused to eat the rest.

Out of options, the professor brought him back to the lab and continued to think of another idea, something to figure out. That night, Tesla figured out how to get out of his enclosure and wondered off throughout the lab. He wanted to eat, but he didn't want to eat the foods given to him. He was no longer free, he had no voice. Regardless on how loving and caring these humans may be, they'll never fully understand what he really wants until he gets it.

Tesla made his way to the lounge, there he saw a refrigerator. Curious, he opened it up and viewed what's inside. Several peanut butter sandwiches, some apples, a peanut butter jar, and a whole other things Tesla couldn't identify at the time. Tesla grabbed a peanut butter sandwich and looked at it for a moment, then took a bite. He had tasted bread before, so that wasn't the whammy that hit him. It was the peanut butter, the flavor exploded on his tongue more than any food he had eaten at the time.

That memory made the old Pikachu smiled in his sleep, _Good times_. He thought.

He recalled how he ate all the peanut butter sandwiches, and made a mess with the jar of peanut butter. When morning came and the professor wondered where he was, he found Tesla sleeping on the couch. His mouth and hands covered in peanut butter, with peanut butter smeared apple cores all over the floor. Not only did the professor figured out Tesla's favorite food, he also figured out that Tesla wanted to choose what to eat. All the food in the fridge was obviously sampled. Foods that were missing, obviously eaten. The hunger strike ended, but it took some time to figure out what Tesla prefers.

Once food was no longer a problem, another problem remained: Who would become the Pikachu's trainer?

For better hope on getting Tesla a trainer, the professor sent him to Faraday Island since there were no Pikachus there at the time. Like the present, the island had an electric-type Pokémon majority. And being the only Pikachu on that island, Tesla found himself meeting with several trainers once again. The professor there was more nicer and more open-minded, and soon learned right away that Tesla would choose his trainer himself. It was that early morning when Tesla woke up and found himself on a table. Before him was a young trainer whose obviously new to Pokémon training. He was wearing a tan tweed jacket, Tesla somewhat liked it, "Hello buddy," he said, pushing his glasses up his face, "How are you doing?"

Tesla got up on all fours and let out a loud growl, sparking his red cheeks to show he means business. The professor saw what was about to happen until...

"Oh," said the young teenager, "So that's how it's gonna be."

The teenager growled back in such a way that it made Tesla jumped and scrambled backwards, he soon realized that this kid understands him. The Pikachu crawled back towards him and stood on his hind legs, "My name is Irvin Westinghouse," the trainer said, "Among all the Pokémon I've seen, you stood out. Not because your the only Pikachu on this flipping island, but you had a look in your eye. You're determined to survive, are you not?"

Tesla nodded his head in response.

"I can help you there in many ways. I have a dream to become Pokémon Master, and you have the passion to survive. Case in point, you want to be free but you also want to maintain it."

Tesla's eyes lit up as he nods, "Well Pikachu," said Irvin, "I'll help you achieve that personal goal."

Irvin held up a fist in front of him, "To be free and stay that way, I'll teach you the basics when we're not training for Pokémon battling. By the time I'm done with you, the world will know who you are and what you stand for. You wanna partner up till either of us die and go explore the world?"

Tesla jumped up and Irvin caught him into his arms, "Looks like we have a deal, friend." he said as he scratched the Pikachu's back.

Irvin figured him out on the first day they met, Tesla let the kid take him under his wing without a word, and remained under his wing till the very end. Tesla smiled as the dreams faded away, returning him to the present and reality.

_And you kept your word_, thought Tesla, _Irvin... Thank you for everything_.

HONK! HONK! HONK! HONK!

Tesla jumped straight out of bed and felt his back creaked, several sparks of electricity flew everywhere as he was entangled into the bedsheets. Within seconds, he landed on his bad arm when he fell to the floor. Tesla winced at the sudden shock of pain, trying his best to hold back his pain.

"Who set this alarm!?" Ash roared.

"Pikachu!" screamed his Pikachu.

Tesla heard Mark laughed, followed by footsteps going downstairs, "Damn you Matt for this heirloom!" the old Pikachu barked.

"Tesla?" Ash called out.

"Right here." Tesla moaned.

The covers was soon pulled off of him and Ash knelled before him, "Tesla, are you okay?"

"I'm okay," said Tesla, "But I'm in terrible pain. Nothing serious or anything, I just landed on the bad arm is all."

Ash picked him up and sat him back on the bed, "I can't believe Matt ever told Emmett how to make that alarm clock," Tesla complained, "It was annoying then but now... It's a torture!"

"Mark sleeps through it." said Ash.

"Pikachu." added Pikachu.

"I wanna fry his ass so badly I-"

"Easy Tesla, don't get worked up about this. You're just grumpy is all."

"Rudely awaken an old Pikachu who just got out of the hospital for surgery. Ugh, can I ever have a moment where I'm not grumpy?"

"We're leaving Faraday Island today."

Tesla looked up at Ash in surprise, "That soon?"

"Yeah."

"Well, let's eat breakfast so we can get outta here!"

**. . .**

Ash watched as the boat arrived on schedule, the same cruise ship had returned and docked. It was unloading tourist from Unova, Ash noticed there were a lot more people getting off the ship than the day he got here. Tesla wasn't afraid to show himself, he stood on his hind feet and looked on as the crowd glance at him. This time he let out a smile and wave as several fans took notice.

Interestingly no one got close to them, keeping mostly to themselves. It was what Tesla wanted for so long, personal space. Though he stayed close to Ash, holding onto his pants leg just to make sure he stays with him at all time. Every time he moved, Tesla moved with him. Ash wondered if Tesla doesn't like to be out here alone, or there was something else bugging Tesla. Whatever it was, Tesla didn't show it. He kept a passive smile on his face as his eyes wondered wherever he was facing.

"Ash," said Mark, "This is goodbye."

"Emolga!" said Emolga as she sat on his shoulder.

"It was nice meeting you." said Ash as he shook Mark's hand.

"If you need anything Ash, just give me a call. I'll might even try to get to your location, wherever you are. Think of me as backup."

"I'll keep note of that."

Ash then turned to Matt, "Thanks for giving me a ride, Matt."

"Your welcome," said Matt, "It's always a pleasure to help a friend."

Tesla jumped up in Matt's arms without warning, "Matt, I'm going to miss you old friend."

"At least you're alright," said Matt, "If you need any new pairs of goggles, just give me a call."

"I'm going to miss joyriding in your car- I mean, I'll keep in touch."

Mark, Ash, and Tesla snickered, "Oops," said Tesla, "That slipped out?"

"What did you do to my car?" Matt asked.

"Irvin told me not to tell you, but since he's dead, screw him. Me and Irvin took joyrides in your car ever since you got it. That's why the air conditioner doesn't work, that's why it squeals every time you set it to reverse, and that's why the car horn blares every time you turn on the windshield wipers. We did some damage to the car and Irvin fixed it himself, but I personally did the electrical wiring and rewired everything to do something unexpected, cause I just wanna be funny."

Matt chuckled, but his eyes had a hint of anger, "I'm going to get rid of that thing eventually."

"You should set off the explosive charge Irvin installed in the gas tank."

"What?"

"Nothing."

Mark began to say, "But you-"

"I didn't say anything Mark," Tesla grinned, "That was all just in your head."

Tesla turned to Mark and winked at him, he nodded in agreement with him. Emolga played it dumb, as always, and nod her head as well. The ship's horn blared, it was about to leave, "We better get on guys." said Ash.

"Pika pika!" said Pikachu.

"Bye Ash," said Mark, "And take care."

"Emogla!" Emolga waved goodbye.

"Bye Mark, bye Matt."

"Hope to see you soon." said Matt.

Matt handed Tesla to Ash and he carried him on board to the ship, Pikachu held on tight as they cross the catwalk up to the ship. Tesla also held tight, even though he was in a better position than the younger Pokémon. Minutes after they got on, the catwalks retreated and the ship began to sail off. Ash, Pikachu, and Tesla waved goodbye to Matt, Mark, and Emolga until they could no longer see them wave. In no time, Faraday City became a beacon of human civilization in the middle of the open sea.

"It sure is beautiful," said Tesla, "The city changed a lot since the last time I came back home."

"The world isn't what you once knew it Tesla," said Ash, "A lot of things had changed, especially in recent times."

"But not the principles, I'll might find an edge to climb on there. I'll figure it out in no time, I may be old but I'm not conservative. I seen what happened to towns when they try to isolate themselves from the world, it wasn't pretty... But of course, that's all in the past. I have no place to call home and no trainer to follow, all I have with me is my training and old memories. Besides that, I have nothing left but assets."

"I wonder how the world looks through your eyes, on occasion I had crossed the realization of the place of human and Pokémon. But when you came along, everything became lucid and thorough."

"The world's harsh, even during my time."

Tesla went silent when some people walked by, taking a quick glance at them before heading off to wherever they were going, "To come to think of it, I've never been inside a Poké ball."

"Why?" Ash asked.

"The most basic excuse you'll ever get out of a Pokémon is simple: Not all Pokémon like to be in their Poké balls. But that's not the case, the Poké balls for some reason don't work for me."

"Pikachu?" Pikachu asked.

"The professors at the many Pokémon labs I've been to before I met Irvin tried to get me into one, I had no choice but to cooperate. It failed every time, no matter what kind of Poké ball they used or how they modified it. Guess what they did to me when they gave up?"

"What?"

"They locked me in a small cage, designed to contain Pikachus. The cage was grounded and rubber coated so any electric attacks would be fruitless, and I was in no mood for wasting my energy. However, the cage failed to contain me because I can reach out through the bars and pick the lock with home crafted tools. It drove the professors nuts. Serves them right."

Pikachu chuckled, "Pika pika P."

"It gets even better when Irvin tried to get me into a new Poké ball. When he got me, I, of course, didn't have a Poké ball. Even though Irvin was told of my inability to be contained by a Poké ball, he completely forgotten about it since he wasn't paying attention. This was just a few weeks after he got me as his first Pokémon, I couldn't stop laughing when he unleash the most hilarious fits I've ever seen."

"You know," said Ash, "When we've met, you didn't even say a word nor speak Pokémon. Now you're talking non-stop, mostly about your past."

Tesla gave him a look, "Irvin always said I'm more of a person than a Pokémon, the most noticeable was the way I walk."

Ash raised an eyebrow, "How do you walk?"

The old Pikachu jumped out of his hands and landed on his hind legs, "Same as how you walk, same as how your Pikachu walk when he feels like it. Just being bi-pedal has an interesting feel to it, cause its a learned ability"

"So you prefer to be on two feet than four?"

"It frees my hands, what you expect? When I was younger, I spent most of my time being mobile on two feet. Now in my later years, I paid the price for being on two feet by getting osteoarthritis in my knees. I can tell you Ash, that simple walk I did kinda hurt a little."

"Even with all the pain in your knees, why still walk on two feet?"

Tesla frowned, "Same reason why humans walk on two feet. But hey, it's not a surprise. All Pikachus can walk on two legs, I just prefer to do it more. Since I can speak human language, I have to present myself more human-like so I can insert my position in this world, even participate occasionally in society at times. Why? Pokémon aren't treated as people, they're treated as either pest or useful companions. So-"

"You're rambling again." Ash noted.

"Pika." Pikachu added.

Tesla stood there for a moment with a neutral expression, "Hm, surprisingly I hadn't attracted a crowd yet."

Ash looked around and saw there were barely any people on the deck, though there were a couple of people looking on at them, "Maybe you scared them off."

Pikachu snickered, "Pikachu Pikachu!"

"Very funny," said Tesla sarcastically, "Really, _very _funny."

The old Pikachu went on and continue chatting non-stop, sometimes repeating a few things he already told Ash. He took a seat and listened to Tesla's stories, some of which he already knew from the Faraday City Library. Normally Ash would try to cover his ears and try to get Tesla to stop talking, but Tesla was special. He was from another time and had mastered human intelligence and behavior, he was one of the few precious jewels this world ever contained. The world may had lost that jewel if it wasn't for Ash, he knew that fact well.

He persuaded Mark to go searching for him, and they did found him. After being defeated the first time, Mark's dad persuaded the local government to fish Tesla out. When Tesla defeated them a 2nd time, he took Pikachu and held him in a safehouse against his will where the two were able to connect to common ground. Then the police nearly had Tesla and injured him badly, and Ash defended him when Mark couldn't control his emotions. Finally Tesla broke and a rib which punctured his lung, which led to a complete examination of his body and unlocked a case of health problems. All were fixed by the hands of skilled surgeons and medical engineers.

It became less odd to be in the company of a 2nd Pikachu, since Tesla spoke and explained his thoughts. The old Pikachu's eyes were full of life and most of his system rejuvenated. But Ash wondered to himself if Tesla really deserved it, since he admitted killing fellow Pokémon and human beings. Ash sensed Tesla's aura was indeed somewhere in the middle, neither good nor evil. Clearly a neutral Pokémon who had a bad tragedy early in his life. Now the damage was mostly healed, but some habits remained.

"Do all those people and Pokémon really deserve to die?" Ash inadvertently blurt out.

Tesla went silent for a moment and considered his answer, "Depends on the individual. Those Pokémon and their trainers who suffered were either injured or killed by foolish decisions, it's not their fault that they don't really know who they're up against. What I did... I was trying to fight for what I believed in. We both fight for similar causes, but in different ways. It always ends the same way. Don't you agree?"

"I agree."

"Okay then, there's your answer."

Without warning Tesla stumbled on his feet, he managed to catch his balance and placed his hand on his stomach, "Ugh." he muttered.

"Tesla," Ash said, almost in panic, "What's wrong?"

"Pika pika!?" added Pikachu.

Tesla scrambled towards the edge of the ship and dropped on his belly, then loudly vomit overboard, after a few seconds he gasped, "I've forgotten that I hate boats," Tesla managed to say before releasing more of his breakfast into the sea, "I've shouldn't have eaten all those waffles this morning!"

The old Pikachu continued to regurgitate for a few minutes, Ash looked over the rail and saw that he made a vertical line of half-digested food and chime on the surface of the ship, covering some windows and even getting through one that was open. When he was done he laid there exhausted, slightly crying over his delayed sea sickness, "Tesla," said Ash, "Are you okay?"

"Can you get me into the infirmary," he muttered, "I need some antacids, and a peppermint."

"You're done puking?"

"Yup... It's all out, I think."

Tesla vomit over the ship's gunnel one last time before passing out cold on the deck.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	29. Epilogue

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that were created by someone else**

**Claimer: Go to my profile to view my characters**

_Epilogue_

The cruise ship landed back at the port Ash first left in. For at least 7 hours, Tesla was out cold from sea sickness. He slept most of the way, but woke up on occasion just to look outside. Tesla could barely stand, even on 4 legs. So when the ship made port, Ash carried Tesla as he crossed the small cat walk and stepped back into Unova.

"We're here Tesla." said Ash.

"Pika Pika!" said Pikachu.

Tesla's eyes flickered open, after looking around a bit he stretched his arms and yawned, "What happened?" he muttered.

"You passed out from sea sickness." said Ash.

"Oh, now I remember. It came in so fast that I probably slept most of the way, did I not?"

"You slept most of the way."

"I'm still too dizzy to walk. So Ash, what port are we in and who do you know around here?"

"Gosh, I forgotten the name of this port."

Ash looked around for anything that tells him about the ocean-side town, no sign that gave such info was in sight, "There is a hotel I know, I think my friends are there."

"Who?"

"Cilan and Iris."

"I've known the same old people forever, so I'm excited to meet those friends of yours. They might have heard of what happened back at Faraday City, so expect them to exacerbate things a little."

Ash head down the road and made a few turns, he looked over his shoulder occasionally to see if he was followed. Holding probably the oldest and famous Pikachu in the world would attract attention, so far he hadn't seen anything suspicious. A few people's eyes glanced at them, but Ash saw that they were merely rolling over them. Every pedestrian walked by without taking notice, it was only when Tesla held up his head where several eyes locked on to him.

"Whoops." Tesla muttered.

First it started with one, next came three, then five. Soon a small crowd were muttering to themselves as they point sheepish fingers at Tesla. Ash clutched him close to his chest as he heard a few children voices call out Tesla's name, "How far is it?" The old Pikachu asked.

"We're here."

Ash walked up the steps of a pleasant hotel that towered above him. When they walked into the lobby they saw several people wonder around, Ash looked around and saw Iris and Cilan watching TV. Iris' Axew sat perched on Iris' shoulder, staring blankly at the nearby wall. For a moment, Ash wondered how they would react. They expected him to come back soon, but not with extra company. Since the HDTV was on the news channel, Ash had no doubt that they knew what took place. He took a deep breath and exhaled, before making his approach.

"Iris, Cilan!"

Iris, Cilan, and Axew turned and saw Ash approached, "Ash!" their faces lit up in joy.

"Axew!" cried Axew with excitement.

Cilan and Iris got up and Ash stood before them, "We saw what happened on the news in Faraday City," said Cilan, "I didn't know Irvin's famous Pokémon was still around and-"

He stop short when he saw what Ash was holding, "Is... Is that him!"

"The one and only." said Tesla.

Cilan nearly jumped, "Whoa, he can talk!"

"Oh my gosh," cried Iris, she walked up and plucked Tesla out of Ash's arms. Causing him to stumble backwards as Iris smothered him a big hug, "You poor thing, you've been injured so many times. I thought you weren't going to make it!"

Tesla squirmed in her grip, struggling to breathe. Ash recalled how Pikachu reacted when he got a similar treatment when they met. He also remembered how powerful Tesla was, which worried Ash greatly, "Be careful, Iris." he warned.

"It's okay Ash," said Tesla as Iris rubbed his head with her head, "I've been waiting for a woman's touch in a _long _time. This reminds me of my own mother, she cuddles me just like this."

Ash saw the soft smile of Tesla's face, his mind tried to sort out the confusion as Iris rubbed Tesla's cheeks and cradled him like an infant. Conventional Pikachus would shock a stranger if they give them this sort of treatment, but it seemed that Tesla was letting this slide. Since he was receiving much-needed love.

"You're from the valley of the dragons." said Tesla.

Iris gave him a puzzled look, "Ash told you?"

"You smell quite like it, and your Axew confirmed that smell."

"Axew." Axew added.

"Wow," said Cilan, "In battle, Tesla can unleash serious punishment. But outside of battle, he's docile."

Tesla gave him a look and grinned, "Boy, you don't know half of it. What you've seen on TV is the last legitimate Pokémon battle I would ever be fighting. You know that if I had lost, I would've been killed?"

Cilan's expression dropped, "Is all the bad stuff they say about you on TV true?" he asked in a worried tone.

"Honestly, yes. If my trainer was still alive, he would have shrugged it off. We're no strangers to this sort of trouble. Despite all the trouble, my reputation seemed to cover most of it. My _adoring _fans gave their support, and I got a pardon that freed me from abomination."

"Will you be my Pokémon?" Iris asked.

Humorously, Tesla gave Iris a hard slap on the face before jumping down on the ground, "Absolutely not. I'm retired, I don't wish to battle anymore. I'm so well trained that I don't need a Pokémon trainer anymore."

"Don't even think about battling him Iris," warned Ash, "He's known for taking out Pokémon in one blow."

"He never lost a battle." Cilan added.

Iris rubbed her cheek for a moment, then let out a sigh, "Oh fine."

"Axew." Axew added in his own disappointment.

Tesla turned his attention back to Ash, "Well Ash, I guess I'm in your debt for the time being. If you need help with anything dire, just track me down."

"Will I ever see you again?" Ash asked.

"Pikachu?" added Pikachu.

"You will, I'll might follow you once in a while. I'm good at tracking people down, so don't be surprised if you stumble into me in your journey."

"Tesla," said Cilan, "You haven't fully recovered from your battle yet. What exactly happened to you back at Faraday City?"

"I broke my rib and punctured a lung," said Tesla, "Nearly died on the spot, Ash got me to the hospital and they fixed me up good. I'll probably stay at the nearby Pokémon Center until I fully recovered from my surgery. In the meantime, feel free to continue your journey."

Pikachu jumped down from Ash's shoulder and gave Tesla a big hug, "Pikachu." he whimpered.

"That's okay ketchup lover," said Tesla, "I hope there's no hard feelings."

"Pika."

"Okay, so we're good."

"What happened between you two?" Cilan asked.

"Pikachu ran into an electric fence I built," explained Tesla, "The high amperage stopped his heart, I managed to revive him quickly though."

"I was terrified when I saw that." said Ash.

Pikachu let go of Tesla and returned on Ash's shoulder, "You shouldn't blame yourself Ash," said Tesla, "I put the fence there just to give myself space, I bet the scientist are taking apart my little wooded area to see how I was living in it for the past 20 years."

Tesla looked at the clock and saw what time it is, "Well guys, I best be heading off. I'll stay at the Pokémon Center for a few weeks until I fully healed from my surgery. You can leave without me, we'll meet once again in no time."

"Bye Tesla." said Ash.

"Pika Pika!" Pikachu said bye.

"Once again," said Tesla, "Thanks for saving my life, I'll pay you back sometime in the near future."

Before Cilan and Iris had their chance to say goodbye, Tesla took off across the hotel lobby and ran outside. He was gone within a blink of an eye.

"Lightning fast," Ash inadvertently say, "Is that what they all say?"

"I think so," said Iris, "Next time you go off like that again, please take us with you. You obviously got all the fun."

"Well let's go then," said Ash, "Let's head east and go find some fun, we're on this journey for a reason. Right?"

"Right on, let's go!"

"Lead the way, Ash." said Cilan.

**. . .**

Tesla went to the highest point in the city that doesn't put him in harms way, he sat down on his rear and looked out towards the horizon. Unova was a beautiful place, and quite modern. More to that, there was so much to do. He took a moment and thought of some goals, and he came up with a small mental list.

_The first goal is to locate my descendants_, he thought, _The second one is to locate some old friends of mine, specifically the Pokémon who served Irvin the longest. Third, locate my sweetheart from the breeding program. Forth, find out the fate of the family I grew up with and locate them. Either if they're dead or still alive._

That was a simple list, Tesla repeated the words in his heads as he stared at the forest outside of the city. He didn't see any wild Pokémon, but they're surely be out there. Since Pikachus weren't native to Unova, he'll be the center of attention. Not to mention that he was an international celebrity, whose never-ending glory was still going when his trainer's had ceased. How ironic, had anyone ever thought that he would still be around when his trainer passed? Irvin had. But his insurance came too late. Was it his fault, or was it Tesla's? He couldn't tell for sure. But now, all that was in the past. It was time to look ahead into the future. No longer he would have to follow someone around. No longer he would take orders from anybody. No longer he would be pushed into situations he didn't wanna get into.

Everything from here on out, Tesla controls his own journey. He makes the decisions, he decides were to go. If anybody gets in his way, his reputation will see to that. Several new friends will be made, along with some enemies. Older friends and enemies from the Westinghouse Era would come around, of course. But they would find him quite different. Many will remember him, some barely remember him at all. It doesn't matter, that was from an old life, but it's worth keeping tabs on contacts he already had. You may never know who you'll need when something goes down.

Tesla Westinghouse stood on his hind legs and looked up at the blue sky, it was a brand new day. There was so much to do, and so much to see. But there was one thing he must do as well. Ash had saved his life, and so was in debt with him. Tesla felt his heart attached to the boy, a new bond perhaps? Probably. But Ash only needed one Pikachu, and Tesla didn't want another trainer. He was too experienced in Pokémon battling, and in a few other things. Somewhere down the road in achieving those goals, Tesla would fine-tune his moves and abilities. It had been a while, but they were all built-in. Tesla was a Pokémon once owned by a Pokémon Master, and Ash was trying to become one.

_Follow him, you old fart_. Tesla thought.

Following Ash would be a start, sooner or later Tesla would have to pay him back. He never goes against his own word. Before he could get started though, he would have to rest. Just walk into a Pokémon Center, get something to eat, then stay there until he fully recovered from his surgery.

But not here. First thing to do was to get away from the ocean, Tesla was tired of seeing it, "Might as well get a ride," Tesla said to himself, "Last that I recall, the next town had a bigger and a better quality Pokémon Center. Doesn't hurt to investigate."

**THE END!**


End file.
